stay

stay 1 S1 W1 / steɪ / 动词 #

1 in a place [不及物动词] to remain in a place rather than leave :

They stayed all afternoon chatting.

stay (at) home

I decided to stay home.

stay for a year/ten minutes/a week etc

Isabel stayed for a year in Paris to study.

stay in

Stay in bed and drink plenty of liquids.

She stayed late to finish the report.

stay here/there

Stay right there! I’ll be back in a minute.

stay to dinner/stay for lunch etc

Why don’t you stay for supper?

stay behind/after

Some of the students stayed after class (= remained after others had gone ) to talk.

stay and do something

I should stay and help.

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In written English, people often prefer to use remain rather than stay , because it sounds more formal:

Many people opted to remain in their homes.

She remained as his deputy for ten years.

2 in a condition [ intransitive always + 副词 / 介词 , linking 动词 ] to continue to be in a particular position, place, or state, without changing 同义词 remain :

Rollings will stay as chairman this year.

stay adj

Eat right to stay healthy.

It was hard to stay awake.

Nine women gained weight, and four stayed the same .

stay away/in/on etc

Stay away from my daughter!

You stay on this road for a mile before turning off.

stay around

Most of her boyfriends don’t stay around (= stay with her ) very long.

3 live somewhere [不及物动词] to live in a place for a short time as a visitor or guest :

How long are they going to stay?

stay at/with

My mother is staying with us this week.

stay in

They’re staying in the same hotel.

stay the night/stay overnight/stay over (= stay from one evening to the next day )

Did you stay the night at Carolyn’s?

4 stay put spoken to remain in one place and not move :

Stay put until I get back.

5 be here to stay to become accepted and used by most people :

Professional women’s basketball is here to stay.

6 stay after (school) to remain at school after the day’s classes are finished, often as a punishment

7 stay the course informal to finish something in spite of difficulties :

Dieters should try hard to stay the course.

8 stay tuned

a) to continue watching or listening to the same television channel or radio station

b) used to say that you should look or listen for more information about a particular subject at a later time :

The project is still under discussion, so stay tuned.

9 stay! used to tell a dog not to move

10 stay sb’s hand literary to stop someone from doing something

11 stay an order/ruling/execution etc law if a judge stays an order, ruling etc, they stop a particular decision from being used or a particular action from happening → stay in touch at touch 2 ( 4 )

THESAURUS

stay to not leave a place, or to be in a place for a particular period of time : Stay where you are and don’t move. | John only stayed at the party for a couple of hours.

remain formal to stay somewhere. In written English, people often prefer to use remain rather than stay , because it sounds more formal : Some 2,000 protesters remained outside the building and refused to leave. | The judge recommended that he remain in jail for the rest of his life.

linger to stay in a place a little longer than you need to, because you are enjoying yourself, or because you hope to see someone or something : He lingered outside the lecture hall, hoping for a chance to talk to her. | There are plenty of small cafés where you can linger over a cappuccino.

loiter to stay in a place not doing anything – used when you think someone is waiting for the chance to do something bad or illegal : The two men had been seen loitering in the area on the day that the car was stolen.

hang around informal to stay somewhere not doing anything : There are gangs of boys hanging around on street corners. | I don’t mind hanging around for a few minutes. | The boss doesn’t like being kept hanging around.

stick around informal to stay in the same place or situation for a period of time, especially while you are waiting for something to happen or someone to arrive : I decided to stick around and see how it all turned out. | Make up your mind. I’m not going to stick around forever.

stay in 短语动词

to spend the evening at home rather than go out :

I was tired, so I decided to stay in.

stay on 短语动词

to continue to do a job or to study after the usual or expected time for leaving :

He resigned as chairman, but stayed on as an instructor.

stay out 短语动词

1 to remain away from home during the evening or night :

He started staying out late , drinking.

2 stay out of something spoken to not get involved in an argument or fight :

You stay out of it . It’s none of your business.

stay up 短语动词

to not go to bed at the time you would normally go to bed :

We stayed up all night talking.

I let the kids stay up late on Fridays.

stay 2 S3 noun #

1 [可数名词,通常单数] a limited time of living in a place stay in/at I met her towards the end of my stay in Los Angeles. long/short/overnight etc stay a short stay in the hospital 2 [可数和不可数名词] law the stopping or delay of an action because a judge has ordered it stay of execution (= a delay in punishing someone by killing them ) 3 [可数名词] a strong wire or rope used for supporting a ship’s mast 4 [可数名词] a short piece of plastic or wire used to keep a shirt collar stiff

COLLOCATIONS

ADJECTIVES/NOUN + stay a long stay During his long stay in the south, he painted only one portrait. a short/brief stay No visa is required for short stays. an overnight stay Business trips may involve an overnight stay. a pleasant/enjoyable stay Our driver said goodbye and wished us a pleasant stay. a hospital stay ( also a stay in hospital British English , a stay in the hospital American English ) Sally is back at work after a short stay in hospital.

verbs have a nice/pleasant etc stay We hope you have a pleasant stay. extend/prolong your stay (= stay longer ) He could not be persuaded to extend his stay.