Meaning of standard In English

• 0 a level of quality:

  • This essay is not of an acceptable standard - do it again.

  • This piece of work is below standard/is not up to standard.

  • We have very high safety standards in this laboratory.

  • Not everyone judges success by the same standards - some people think happiness is more important than money.

  • Her technique became a standard against which all future methods were compared.

  • Most people agree that there are standards (of behaviour) that need to be upheld.

• 1 a pattern or model that is generally accepted:

  • This program is an industry standard for computers.

• 2 a car with gears that are changed by hand

• 3 a flag, especially a long, narrow one ending with two long points:

  • the royal standard

• 4 usual rather than special, especially when thought of as being correct or acceptable:

  • White is the standard colour for this model of refrigerator.

  • These are standard procedures for handling radioactive waste.

  • The metre is the standard unit for measuring length in the SI system.

  • mainly UK Your new TV comes with a two year guarantee as standard.

  • Most announcers on the BBC speak standard English.

  • In Standard American, "gotten" is used as a past participle of "get".

  • Her book is still a standard text in archaeology, even though it was written more than 20 years ago.

• 5 usual or expected; not involving something special or extra:

  • a standard contract

  • I don’t work a standard, 35-hour week.

  • The car came with an air conditioner and tape player as standard equipment.

  • This is a standard medical text (= a commonly used medical book).

• 6 something that others of a similar type are compared to or measured by, or the expected level of quality:

  • moral/ethical/community standards

  • That’s not their usual standard of service.

  • The new standard will allow data to be sent over telephone wires at higher speeds.

• 7 a song or piece of music that has been popular for many years and that musicians often perform

• 8 a flag used as the symbol of a person, group, or organization:

  • Pete carried the troop’s standard in the parade.

• 9 a level of quality that people expect and generally accept as normal:

  • basic/high/low standard Their Customer Services is generally of a very high standard.

  • Online form-completion is fast becoming the standard.

  • achieve/meet/set a standard Banks in Hong Kong and China are setting the standard for customer service in call centres.

  • Customers have witnessed the standard of services decline while the profitability of the banks has escalated.

  • by sb's/sth's standards At $80,000, the house is a bargain by American standards.

  • The new probe is modest by modern space technology standards.

  • below/up to standard The electrical equipment was not up to standard.

  • falling/rising standards

  • improve/lower/raise standards

• 10 an official rule, unit of measurement, or way of operating that is used in a particular area of manufacturing or services:

  • a common/a global/an international standard MP3 is a recognized global standard for audio encoding and compression.

  • an accountancy/industry/legal standard

  • Several states were given notice that they do not meet the standard for ozone levels.

  • safety standards

  • a federal/government/national standard

  • enforce/tighten standards

• 11 normal or average:

  • The price quoted is for the standard size.

  • standard practice/procedure The board has been careful to follow standard procedures and employment law.

  • The current model comes with all these extra features as standard.

• 12 following a particular set of rules or measurements, without any changes or added details:

  • standard contract/letter/reply

  • standard format/size Candidates need to enter their expenditure records in a standard format on a Web-based form.

• 13 used by most people:

  • It has become the standard text for all trainee accountants.