Gambling terms, explained straight

Casino & Table Games

Stand (blackjack)

In blackjack, standing means you decline any more cards and your hand is locked at its current total.

Also called
stand pat, sit, stick, stay1
Applies to
Blackjack and blackjack terminology; one of the standard player actions on a hand12
Related actions
hit, double down, split, surrender13

Key points

  • When a player stands, the hand is complete and no further cards are drawn for that hand.12
  • Stand is one of the available decisions alongside hit, double down, split, and surrender.13
  • Unlike hit or double down, standing takes no additional cards.12

Where this term is used

Casino games Blackjack terms and phrases A glossary of common blackjack terminology. Casino games Hit (blackjack) Explains the hit action, the opposite of standing. Casino games Hold (blackjack terms) Covers the hold percentage, a measure of casino revenue. Casino games Blackjack Overview of the game of blackjack. Casino games Insurance blackjack Explains the insurance side bet in blackjack. Casino games Basic strategy blackjack Covers the mathematically optimal way to play blackjack.

Sources

  1. Blackjack en.wikipedia.org Defines stand and lists alternative names and related actions.
  2. Blackjack wizardofodds.com Describes stand as a player action and distinguishes it from hit.
  3. Blackjack rules, part 2 - Wizard of Odds wizardofodds.com Lists stand among standard blackjack decisions alongside double down.

Sources are drawn from regulators, universities and published research, and each one is labelled with what it actually is — a preprint is not called a paper. Bookmaker and affiliate pages are never cited here, because a page that sells betting is not a neutral authority on it.

Written and maintained by Ellis Warrender, writer and maintainer.

Last updated 28 July 2026. Spotted an error? Tell me and it gets fixed and logged on the corrections page.