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Synonyms

can't stand

Idioms  

  1. Also,. Thoroughly dislike; be unable to put up with something or someone. For example, I can't stand the sight of her; she's obnoxious, or I can't bear to leave the country, or I can't stomach a filthy kitchen. The oldest of these synonymous expressions is can't abide, which Shakespeare used in 2 Henry IV (3:2): “She could not abide Master Shallow.” Can't stand dates from the early 1600; can't bear dates from about 1700 and often but not always is used with an infinitive; can't stomach dates from the late 1600s and today is less common than the others.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"And you can't stand out when you haven't got anything on your CV".

From BBC

“We can’t stand here all day waiting,” Mr. Murphy said.

From Literature

“He just can’t stand not playing basketball. He loves the game so much and wants to play every night. And that’s an incredible quality. Just a player who’s like fighting and clawing to play versus looking for a reason maybe not to. So we commend Luka for that. In terms of this injury, the good news is it doesn’t appear to be anything serious. It was a mild hamstring strain and he is truly day-to-day.”

From Los Angeles Times

“I can’t stand that hot kitchen one more minute.”

From Literature

“Lord, I miss her so much. I can’t stand to eat alone in the house without my Mary. So I come out here every night to be with her,” Tom told her, the tears glistening on his cheeks.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.