Common Phrases with the Verb STAY

Common Phrases with the Verb STAY

Hello, dear English learners! Today, we are looking at a small but mighty verb: stay. It may look simple, but it appears in many everyday phrases and expressions that native speakers use constantly. If you want to sound more natural and confident in English—especially in conversations, stories, and even Cambridge exam writing—these expressions will come in very handy. Common Phrases with the Verb STAY

Let’s explore them one by one.

Stay in / stay at

Meaning: remain in a place and not go out or leave.

Use stay in for general places (home, indoors) and stay at for specific locations (a hotel, a friend’s house).

• It was snowing heavily, so we decided to stay in and watch a film.
• When I visit London, I usually stay at a small hotel near Hyde Park.

Stay up

Meaning: remain awake later than usual.

• I had to stay up to finish my report.
• The children were so excited that they stayed up until midnight.

Stay away (from)

Meaning: avoid going near a person, place, or thing.

• You should stay away from that old building; it isn’t safe.
• She tried to stay away from sugary snacks during her diet.

Stay out of something

Meaning: not get involved in a situation, especially a conflict.

• This is between them; you should stay out of it.
• I try to stay out of office politics. Common Phrases with the Verb STAY

Stay out

Meaning: remain outdoors or away from home for a long time.

• We stayed out all evening enjoying the Christmas market.
• Don’t stay out too late — it’s freezing tonight!

Stay behind

Meaning: remain in a place after everyone else has left.

• After the meeting, she stayed behind to ask a few more questions.
• Some students stayed behind to help clean the classroom.

Stay tuned

Meaning: keep watching or listening because more information is coming.

• Stay tuned for more updates on our new project!
• The presenter told viewers to stay tuned after the break.

Stay calm / stay positive / stay focused

Meaning: maintain a mental or emotional state.

Examples:

• Even during the exam, try to stay calm and breathe.
• Despite the difficulties, they managed to stay positive.
• If you want to achieve your goals, you need to stay focused.

Stay on track

Meaning: continue making progress; not get distracted. Common Phrases with the Verb STAY

• She uses a planner to stay on track with her studies.
• The team is trying hard to stay on track to meet the deadline.

Stay in touch

Meaning: maintain communication with someone.

• Even after moving abroad, they stayed in touch for years.
• Let’s stay in touch after the conference.

Stay the night

Meaning: spend the night at someone’s home or another place.

• You can stay the night if you don’t want to drive home in the snow.
• They invited us to stay the night at their cottage.

Stay put

Meaning: remain in the same place and not move.

• The doctor asked her to stay put until the test results arrived.
• During the storm, everyone was told to stay put.

Stay strong

Meaning: continue to be emotionally or physically strong during a difficult time.

• She told him to stay strong and trust the process.
• The message “Stay strong” became popular during the pandemic.

Common Phrases with the Verb STAY

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