staredown

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noun

A game or confrontation in which two individuals intently gaze at each other, until the other individual is forced to blink or turn away.

Scrabble 13
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Meanings

nounstaredown (plural staredowns)

plural staredowns

  1. informalA game or confrontation in which two individuals intently gaze at each other, until the other individual is forced to blink or turn away.
  2. idiomaticA confrontation in which each party waits for the other to yield.

    Since then, Stephon, 31, and the Knicks have been locked in a staredown regarding the cost of a potential buyout.

    2009 January 26, David Waldstein, “Pursuing N.B.A., Marbury’s Brother Takes Long Detour”, in New York Times

Origin

From stare + down.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

Readstown
Cite this entry
APA

staredown. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/staredown

MLA

“staredown.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/staredown. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “staredown,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/staredown.

Source: staredown on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.