status quo

noun

-ˈkwō How to pronounce status quo (audio)
Definition of status quonext
as in normality
the state or fact of being the way things usually are civic leaders who are afraid to do anything that might change the town's status quo

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of status quo The Mets need a change of philosophy and keeping Stearns as head of baseball operations is only going to be an extension of a status quo that clearly isn’t working. — Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 27 June 2026 The 2026 World Cup, hosted on home soil, represented a once-in-a-generation opportunity to take a big step toward changing that status quo. — Becky Sullivan, NPR, 27 June 2026 According to a report from Bloomberg, Oman has informed European officials that the waterway will not be able to go back to its pre-war status quo, citing the potential for some fees to be charged. — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 26 June 2026 Any attempt to change the religious status quo of the site could be dangerous, according to Mazen Jabari, a Palestinian political consultant and researcher who traces his family’s history in Jerusalem’s Old City back 600 years and lives within view of Al Aqsa. — Gabe Joselow, NBC news, 26 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for status quo
Recent Examples of Synonyms for status quo
normality
Noun
  • Sometimes there’s no need to look any further than normality.
    — TIME, Time, 26 June 2026
  • Oil prices fell to their lowest level since the US-Israel war with Iran, as growing signs of a tentative return to normality through the Strait of Hormuz soothed markets.
    — Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 25 June 2026
Definition of normality

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statuses
status quo
statute
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Cite this Entry

“Status quo.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/status%20quo. Accessed 14 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on status quo

Nglish: Translation of status quo for Spanish Speakers

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