stay behind

idiom

: to not leave at the present time

You can go on ahead. I'll stay behind to help clean up.

Examples of stay behind in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Their mother, Chicago police Sgt. Cindy Ramos, typically had to stay behind and work. —

Stacy St. Clair, Chicago Tribune, 9 Aug. 2024 That means two of the four people originally planned to fly on the mission—three NASA astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut—would have to stay behind on Earth. —

Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Aug. 2024 The reasons are partly anthropomorphic — these large, gangly birds are fiercely protective of their young, and the fathers stay behind to rear the chicks after the mothers fly on to central Mexico or some other wintering grounds. —

Krista Stevens, Longreads, 8 July 2024 Hours ticked by, Palomares recalled, and some parents had to stay behind to supervise her as the competition emptied out. —

Molly Hensley-Clancy, Washington Post, 23 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for stay behind

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stay behind.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.