as in halt
a point in a struggle where neither side is capable of winning or willing to give in
in the battle over bedtime the parents and their son are at a Mexican standoff
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Recent Examples of Mexican standoff
The top echelon of Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon has dissolved into a circle of mutual recrimination and enmity worthy of a Mexican standoff from a Quentin Tarantino film.
—
The Editors, National Review, 28 Apr. 2025
This week, Todd S. Purdum, a longtime political reporter for The New York Times, explains why Democrats have only themselves to blame for the Mexican standoff they’re now locked in with a very stubborn octogenarian.
—airmail.news, 13 July 2024
This is going to be a Mexican standoff relationship.
—Nick Romano, EW.com, 20 Oct. 2022
Ahmet Şık, a former journalist and an opposition MP, likened the situation to a Mexican standoff, a confrontation in which no strategy exists that allows any party to achieve victory.
—Guney Yildiz, Forbes, 24 May 2021
The Editors, National Review, 28 Apr. 2025
This week, Todd S. Purdum, a longtime political reporter for The New York Times, explains why Democrats have only themselves to blame for the Mexican standoff they’re now locked in with a very stubborn octogenarian.
—airmail.news, 13 July 2024
This is going to be a Mexican standoff relationship.
—Nick Romano, EW.com, 20 Oct. 2022
Ahmet Şık, a former journalist and an opposition MP, likened the situation to a Mexican standoff, a confrontation in which no strategy exists that allows any party to achieve victory.
—Guney Yildiz, Forbes, 24 May 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Mexican standoff
halt
Noun
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Australian restaurant chain Guzman y Gomez’s attempt to build a burrito empire in the Chicago area came to an sudden halt Friday when the company closed its Naperville store and seven other locations.—
Brian J. Rogal,
Chicago Tribune,
23 May 2026
-
Boyd’s good works come to a screeching halt when she and her group are surrounded and captured by Palmer and his little cohort, including Boyd’s former partner, Fred Stanislaus.—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
22 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mexican standoff.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Mexican%20standoff. Accessed 25 May. 2026.
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