stand one's ground

Idioms and Phrases

Also, hold one's ground ; stand fast . Be firm or unyielding, as in You've got to respect him for standing his ground when all the others disagree , or I'm going to hold my ground on this issue , or No matter how he votes, I'm standing fast . This idiom, dating from the early 1600s, originally was applied to an army holding its territory against the enemy, but was being used figuratively as well by the end of the 1600s.

Example Sentences

As Ferzan put it in her law review article: “What is defense? What is reasonable? When may one stand one’s ground and when must one retreat? And, when is a citizen entitled to step in as an aggressor in the name of the state?”

From Slate

“What is defense? What is reasonable? When may one stand one’s ground and when must one retreat? And, when is a citizen entitled to step in as an aggressor in the name of the state?”

From Seattle Times

This principle places idealized, “law-abiding citizens” — not all citizens — in the service of lethal self-defense and equates good citizenship with the capacity to stand one’s ground against criminal strangers.

From Salon

There are 86,400 seconds a day—to stand exposed, and yet stand one’s ground, to begin to grasp in fundamental, naked terms who one really is, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

From Time

Jones didn't settle there himself - he didn't really approve of emigration - the better option, in his view, was to stand one's ground in Wales itself.

From BBC

Related Words

• adamant
• immutable
• intractable
• obstinate
• resolute
• rigid
• rigorous
• steadfast
• strict
• stringent
• uncompromising
• unyielding