| 1. | Military. (formerly) a general order always in force in a command and establishing uniform procedures for it; standard operating procedure. |
| 2. | standing orders, Parliamentary Procedure. the rules ensuring continuity of procedure during the meetings of an assembly. |
| standing order n. An order or rule held to be in force until specifically changed or withdrawn, especially a regulation relating to military or parliamentary procedure. |
standing order
A regulation that is in force until it is specifically changed or withdrawn, as in The waiters have standing orders to fill all glasses as they are emptied. This idiom began life in the mid-1600s as standing rule; the word order began to be used about 1800 for such military orders and gradually was extended to other areas.
