stationary

stationary — adjective

1. remaining in the same position without moving, or staying the same in amount, le

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

remaining in the same position without moving, or staying the same in amount, level, or condition over a period of time

Example

The car remained stationary at the traffic lights for several minutes.

collocation: remain stationary

House prices have stayed stationary in this area for nearly a year.

collocation: stay stationary

Common collocations
  • remain stationary
  • stay stationary
  • keep stationary
  • stationary position
  • stationary object
  • stationary state
  • stationary bicycle
  • stationary vehicle
Synonyms
  • still

    more common in everyday speech for physical stillness; cannot express 'unchanging in amount'

  • motionless

    emphasises a complete absence of movement, often for people or animals

  • fixed

    suggests something deliberately attached or held in place

  • static

    more technical, describing systems or processes that are not developing or changing

Antonyms
  • moving

    general opposite in physical contexts

  • changing

    opposite when referring to amounts, levels, or conditions

  • dynamic

    opposite in technical or formal contexts describing systems or processes

Usage Note

Frequently paired with linking verbs such as remain, stay, and keep. In everyday speech, still is more common for physical motionlessness ('Sit still!' not 'Sit stationary!'). The adverb stationarily exists but is very rare — avoid it in ordinary writing.

Common Mistakes

I bought some stationary at the shop.
I bought some stationery at the shop.
stationary (adjective) means not moving; stationery (noun) means writing materials.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Still is the most common everyday word for something not moving — it is interchangeable with stationary in most physical contexts (though stationary sounds slightly more formal). Still, however, cannot express the 'unchanging in amount' sense (we say 'static prices' not 'still prices'). Motionless suggests a complete absence of movement and is often used for people or animals who are deliberately or suddenly not moving. Fixed emphasises that something is attached or held in place, often by design. Static describes a lack of change over time, particularly in technical or formal contexts about systems, numbers, or processes. For example: 'The car stayed still at the lights' is natural speech, whereas 'The car remained stationary at the lights' is somewhat more formal. 'The economy is static' is a technical usage; 'The economy is stationary' is less idiomatic for this sense.

still ↗motionless ↗fixed ↗static ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • remain stationary
  • stay stationary
  • keep stationary

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Stationary comes from Latin stationarius, meaning 'belonging to a military post or station.' In late Latin the meaning shifted to 'not moving,' and the word entered English in the 1400s with that sense. It is not related to stationery (writing materials), which comes from a different Latin root referring to a bookseller's shop.