standby meaning

standby as a noun

1. something that can be relied on when needed

   Type of: thing

   Related forms: stand by

2. an actor able to replace a regular performer when required

   Synonyms: understudy

   Type of: actor

   Related forms: stand by

standby as an adjective

1. ready for emergency use
   • a standby generator
   • a standby crew

   Similar: secondary

standby in a sentence

• The fire department is on standby day and night.
• Drones are male bees that are on standby for mating with a virgin queen, should the need arise.

How to pronounce standby

standby is pronounced /ˈstændbaɪ/ in British English and /ˈstændbaɪ/ in American English. It has 2 syllables, with the stress on the first syllable.

Words that rhyme with standby

• fly
• tie
• apply
• cry
• lie
• high
• supply
• die
• try
• dry
• eye
• deny
• pry
• spy
• defy
• sigh
• imply
• reply
• buy
• fry
• guy
• awry
• nearby
• hi