Meaning & use
umbrella stand
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Meanings
nouncountable
A container or rack, often tall and narrow, placed near a door to hold umbrellas upright.
Grammar: Countable: you can say 'an umbrella stand' or 'two umbrella stands'.
Patterns
- put something in the umbrella stand
- leave something in the umbrella stand
- by the umbrella stand
Please leave your wet umbrella in the umbrella stand by the front door.
The hotel lobby had a brass umbrella stand next to the reception desk.
She bought a wooden umbrella stand to keep the hallway tidy.
nouncountable
A piece of furniture with hooks or slots for hanging umbrellas, sometimes combined with a coat rack.
Grammar: Countable; often used with 'a' or 'the'.
Patterns
- a combined umbrella stand
- an umbrella stand with hooks
This umbrella stand also has hooks for coats and hats.
They installed a wall-mounted umbrella stand in the entryway.
Word forms
| plural | umbrella stands |
|---|
Common combinations
- wooden umbrella stand
- The antique shop sold a tall wooden umbrella stand.
- brass umbrella stand
- A polished brass umbrella stand stood in the corner.
- put an umbrella in the stand
- Please put your umbrella in the stand before you come in.
- umbrella stand by the door
- There's an umbrella stand by the door for wet umbrellas.
- empty the umbrella stand
- Remember to empty the umbrella stand if water collects at the bottom.
Synonyms and how they differ
- umbrella holder
- Similar but often smaller and may be just a single slot or clip, not a full stand.
- umbrella rack
- Focuses on the rack structure with slots or hooks; can be wall-mounted.
Word family
Commonly confused: umbrella stand or coat rack? umbrella stand or umbrella holder?
umbrella stand vs coat rack
A coat rack is for hanging coats, hats, and scarves; an umbrella stand is for holding umbrellas upright, though some furniture combines both.
umbrella stand vs umbrella holder
Often interchangeable, but 'umbrella holder' can also mean a small clip or ring that holds one umbrella, not a floor stand.
Practice
Where should you put a wet umbrella when you enter a house?
Choose one answer.
We usually say 'put something in the umbrella stand' because it is a container. 'On' suggests placing it on top, 'at' is about location not placement, and 'by' means next to it, not inside.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “umbrella stand”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.