stationary
adjective
Did you know?
stationary or stationery?
The Internet is awash with mnemonics (“something (such as a word, a sentence, or a song) that helps people remember something“) designed to assist those who have trouble distinguishing between two similar words. A fair share of these turn out to be for the words stationery and stationary. The most commonly suggested method is to remember that you buy papER at a stationERy store. If this trick does not work for you, then perhaps it will help to remember that a stationery store is one that is run by a stationer. This word was originally applied to a bookseller, but by the middle of the 17th century it began to be used for a person who sells papers, pens, and office goods.
Examples of stationary in a Sentence
Smithsonian, June 2005
By pushing the keys with the side of his fist and pushing foot pedals, the player transfers mechanical force to clappers, which strike the stationary bells, which are tuned to specific notes.
—Douglas Martin, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2003
And while atomic reactors and chemical storage facilities are the sort of stationary targets that invite bombing, bioweapons laboratory materials are small enough to be put in a truck and moved to another location.
—Gregg Easterbrook, New Republic, 25 Feb. 2002
The weather front has remained stationary over the Southeast.
a stationary bicycle is good for exercise, but you won't enjoy the scenery very much
Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 2 Apr. 2024
Meanwhile, the ship remains stationary, and its 21 crew members remain on board for the foreseeable future, officials said.
—TIME, 1 Apr. 2024
Other changes — purchasing new flags, badges and stationary — will require less time to implement and will largely be covered by department budgets.
—Sierra Lopez, The Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2024
Some stationary and walk-behind models also include vacuum tubes.
—Rachel Ahrnsen, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Feb. 2024
The always-stylish shop has it all, from kitchenwares and art to stationary, dog toys, and mugs.
—Staff Author Published, Travel + Leisure, 5 Feb. 2024
Sodium and gold also have applications in energy—with sodium rechargeable batteries finding use today in stationary energy storage, while nanoporous gold acts like a catalyst and serves as the battery’s cathode.
—IEEE Spectrum, 27 Mar. 2024
James, the 39-year-old legend was suddenly stationary after playing 37 intense minutes.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024
The same is true of the physical production, which glistens in the reflection of a downstage water’s edge, below a canopy of A-frames and vertical fluorescent bulbs glowing like stationary falling stars (the set is by David Zinn and Brett J. Banakis, the lighting by Ben Stanton).
—Naveen Kumar, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stationary.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Stationary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stationary. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
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stationary
adjective
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stationary
adjective
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