Meaning & use
stance
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Meanings
nouncountable
A person's or group's declared position or attitude on a particular issue.
Grammar: Countable; usually followed by on, and often with take or adopt: a stance on tax.
Patterns
- a stance on something
- take a stance against something
The mayor took a firm stance on reducing traffic downtown.
The company's stance on remote work has changed since last year.
Her stance against animal testing is well known.
nouncountablesport
The way someone stands, especially the position of the feet and body when about to do something such as hit a ball.
Grammar: Countable; often found in sport, as in a batting stance.
Patterns
- a wide stance
- change your stance
The golfer adjusted his stance before swinging.
A wide stance gives you better balance when you lift heavy objects.
The boxer kept a low stance and watched his opponent.
Word forms
| plural | stances |
|---|
Common combinations
- take a stance
- The school decided to take a stance against bullying.
- firm stance
- The union held a firm stance during the talks.
- stance on an issue
- Voters want to know each candidate's stance on housing.
- hard-line stance
- The government adopted a hard-line stance on border security.
- batting stance
- The coach corrected the young player's batting stance.
Synonyms and how they differ
- position
- Position is more general and neutral, while stance often suggests a public, deliberate choice.
- attitude
- Attitude describes a general feeling or approach, whereas stance means a specific stated view on an issue.
- posture
- Posture mostly refers to how the body is held and is rarely about opinions in everyday use.
- standpoint
- Standpoint stresses the point of view from which someone judges things, rather than the position taken.
Word family
- stand verb
- to be upright, or to hold a view
- stanza noun
- a group of lines in a poem, from the same Italian root meaning room
- standpoint noun
- a point of view
Commonly confused: stance or stanza?
stance vs stanza
A stanza is a section of a poem. It looks similar to stance but has an unrelated meaning.
Practice
The council announced its ___ on the new parking rules.
Choose one answer.
A stance on an issue is a stated position. Stanza, stand-in and stamina do not fit the meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “stance”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.