stance

Definition

The manner, pose, or posture in which one stands.

Etymology

From Middle English staunce (“place to stand; battle station; position; standing in society; circumstance, situation; stanchion”), from Old French estance (“predicament; situation; sojourn, stay”) (compare modern French stance (“stanza; position one stands in when golfing”)), from Italian stanza (“room, standing place; stanza”), from Vulgar Latin *stantia, from Latin stō (“to stand; to remain, stay”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand (up)”). The word is cognate with Spanish estante (“shelf”) and a doublet of stanza. The verb is derived from the noun. Compare typologically Czech postoj (“stance (the way of holding a body); stance (point of view)”) (cognate via PIE). Also see position, posture.

Example Sentences

• "The fencer’s stance showed he was ready to begin."
• "Stance and gait are best examined with the patient barefoot; meaningful findings can be obtained only if the patient has enough room to walk in. The testing of stance and gait often provides important clues to the type of disease process that is present."
• "Peter Gammons told me Yaz switched his stance every year, but Cal [Ripken Jr.]'s brother Billy [Ripken] said Cal switched his stance midseason, midgame, even mid-at-bat. […] The most beloved and memorable of the Ripken stances was "the Violin." Cal would bend his knees and slightly open his stance to face the pitcher. He would rest the bat on his shoulder while thrusting the bat knob back and forth toward the strike zone. This movement was widely considered Cal's batting masterpiece."