What does "staunch" mean?
That which stanches or checks a flow.
Staunch
/stɔːn(t)ʃ/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: That which stanches or checks a flow.
- Grammar: staunch is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: steadfast, adherent, airtight, ardent.
- Useful contrasts: accommodating, allow, bloodied.
- Usage evidence: My great aunt was a staunch teetotaler.
How to use "staunch"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "staunch" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "staunch" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "staunch" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "staunch" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
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- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "staunch" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "steadfast" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
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When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 That which stanches or checks a flow. obsolete
- 2 Alternative spelling of stanch (“a floodgate by which water is accumulated, for floating a boat over a shallow part of a stream by its release; also, a dam or lock in a river”). alt-of, alternative
- 3 That which stanches or checks a flow.; A plant or substance which stops the flow of blood; a styptic. archaic, obsolete, specifically
- 4 An act of stanching or stopping. obsolete
- 5 Synonym of afterdamp (“suffocating gases present in a coal mine after an explosion caused by firedamp”).
Verb
- 1 Alternative spelling of stanch. alt-of, alternative
"I will couer the depe vpon him, I will ſtaunch his floudes, and the greate waters ſhalbe reſtrayned."
- 2 stop the flow of a liquid wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Not permitting water or some other liquid to escape or penetrate; watertight.
"Yet if I knevv, / VVhat Hoope ſhould hold vs ſtaunch from edge to edge / Ath'vvorld [of the world]: I vvould perſue it."
- 2 Not permitting water or some other liquid to escape or penetrate; watertight.; Impermeable to air or other gases; airtight. broadly
"[T]vvas very difficult to procure a Bladder ſmall and fine enough for that litle Cylinder; and that one, vvhich at length vve procured, vvould not continue ſtanch for many Tryals, but vvould after a vvhile part vvith a litle Air in the vvell exhauſted Receiver, vvhen tvvas clog'd vvith the utmoſt VVeight it could ſuſtain: but vvhilſt it continued ſtanch vve made one fair Tryal vvith it, […]"
- 3 Strongly built; also, in good or strong condition.
"Hovv goodly, and hovv to be vviſht vvere ſuch an obedient unanimity as this, vvhat a fine conformity vvould it ſtarch us all into? doubtles a ſtanch and ſolid peece of frame-vvork, as any January could freeze together."
- 4 Staying true to one's aims or principles; firm, resolute, unswerving. figuratively
"Without our staunch front line the enemy would have split the regiment."
- 5 Dependable, loyal, reliable, trustworthy. figuratively
"He’s been a staunch supporter of mine through every election."
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 Dependable, loyal, reliable, trustworthy.; Of a hunting dog: that can be depended on to pick up the scent of, or to mark, game. figuratively
"[T]he horſemen & huntſmen ſhould blemiſh at ſuch places as they ſee the Hart enter into a thicket or couert to the end that if the hounds fall to change, they may return to thoſe blemiſhes, and put their hounds to the right ſlot and view, vntill they haue rowzed or found him againe with their bloudhound, or with ſome other ſtanch old hound of the kennell, in the which they may aſſie themſelues. For old ſtaunch houndes which will not hunt change, when they ſee an Hart rowzed & before them, they neuer call on, nor once open: but if they be young raſh houndes, they will runne with full cry & ſo take change."
- 7 Cautious, restrained. figuratively, obsolete
"It is good to be very ſtaunch and cautious of talking about other Men and their Concernments, in vvay of paſſing Characters on them, or deſcanting upon their Proceedings for vvant of other Diſcourse: This is the common refuge of Idleneſs, and the practice of fidling Goſſips, vvho becauſe they vvill do nothing themſelves, muſt be reflecting upon the doings of others; […]"
- 8 Stubborn, intransigent. figuratively
Adjective
- 1 firm and dependable especially in loyalty wordnet
Example
"My great aunt was a staunch teetotaler."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "staunch"?
Common synonyms include: steadfast, adherent, airtight, ardent, bigoted, block.
How do you use "staunch" in a sentence?
My great aunt was a staunch teetotaler.
How do you pronounce "staunch"?
Pronounced /stɔːn(t)ʃ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English staunch, staunche (“(adjective) in good condition or repair; solidly made, firm; watertight; of a person or wound: not bleeding; certain; intact; (adverb) firmly, soundly”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman estaunche, Old French estanche (“firm; watertight”) (modern French étanche (“airtight; watertight”)), a variant of estanc (“a pond”), from estanchier (“to stop the flow of a liquid (blood, water, etc.); to make (something) watertight; to quench (thirst)”) (modern French étancher), possibly from one of the following: * From Vulgar Latin *stagnicāre, from Latin stāgnum (“piece of standing water, pond; fen, swamp”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂g- (“to drip; to seep”). * From Vulgar Latin *stānticāre, from *stānticus (“tired”), from Latin stāns, stāntis (“standing; remaining, staying”). Stāns is the present active participle of stō (“to stand; to remain, stay”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand (up)”). Cognates * Italian stanco (“bored; tired”) * Portuguese estanque (“watertight”) * Romansch staunza (“a room”) * Spanish estanco (“closed, sealed; airtight; watertight”)
Etymology 2
From Middle English staunchen, staunche (“to stop the flow of blood, diarrhoea, or other bodily fluids; to alleviate, ease; to appease, assuage, satisfy; to cure; to overcome; to put an end to; to repress, suppress; of a river or stream: to stop flowing; of waters, wind, or weather: to become calm, subside; to extinguish or put out (a fire)”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman estauncher, estaunchier, estanger, Old French estancher, estanchier (verb) [and other forms]; see further at etymology 1 and at stanch.
Etymology 3
Either: * from Middle English staunche, stanche (“something which stops the flow of blood; (figuratively) shepherd’s purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris)”), from Old French estanche (“pond; tank”), from estanc (“pond”) (modern French étang (“pond; lagoon”)), from estanchier (verb): see further at etymology 2; and/or * derived directly from the verb.
Etymology 4
See stanch (etymology 4).