stand (one's) ground
1. To brace oneself and maintain one's position during or when anticipating an attack. The other team's offense was incredibly aggressive, but our defense stood their ground. Despite the guy's size, I managed to stand my ground during the fight.
2. To refuse to yield, compromise, or be belittled; to stand up against an attack or insult. The boss scoffed at her idea initially, but she stood her ground and explained it in greater detail. He kept offering me less money, but I stood my ground and got the full asking price.
stand your ground
A phrase referring, in the United States, to a law that allows one to use force that would otherwise be illegal against a person that they perceive as posing an immediate threat of serious bodily harm. The name comes from the idea that one can "stand one's ground" rather than retreat. The shooter's state has a stand your ground law, so it's unlikely he'll face any charges, even though the man he shot was unarmed. It's still too early to tell whether the prosecutor will consider this a case of "stand your ground."
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
stand one's ground
and hold one's groundto stand up for one's rights; to resist an attack. The lawyer tried to confuse me when I was giving testimony, but I managed to stand my ground. some people were trying to crowd us out of the line for tickets, but we held our ground.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.