The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Stay \Stay\ (st[=a]), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stayed (st[=a]d) or
   Staid (st[=a]d); p. pr. & vb. n. Staying.] [OF. estayer,
   F. ['e]tayer to prop, fr. OF. estai, F. ['e]tai, a prop,
   probably fr. OD. stade, staeye, a prop, akin to E. stead; or
   cf. stay a rope to support a mast. Cf. Staid, a., Stay,
   v. i.]
   1. To stop from motion or falling; to prop; to fix firmly; to
      hold up; to support.
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            Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the
            one side, and the other on the other side. --Ex.
                                                  xvii. 12.
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            Sallows and reeds . . . for vineyards useful found
            To stay thy vines.                    --Dryden.
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   2. To support from sinking; to sustain with strength; to
      satisfy in part or for the time.
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            He has devoured a whole loaf of bread and butter,
            and it has not staid his stomach for a minute. --Sir
                                                  W. Scott.
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   3. To bear up under; to endure; to support; to resist
      successfully.
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            She will not stay the siege of loving terms,
            Nor bide the encounter of assailing eyes. --Shak.
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   4. To hold from proceeding; to withhold; to restrain; to
      stop; to hold.
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            Him backward overthrew and down him stayed
            With their rude hands and grisly grapplement.
                                                  --Spenser.
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            All that may stay their minds from thinking that
            true which they heartily wish were false. --Hooker.
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   5. To hinder; to delay; to detain; to keep back.
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            Your ships are stayed at Venice.      --Shak.
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            This business staid me in London almost a week.
                                                  --Evelyn.
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            I was willing to stay my reader on an argument that
            appeared to me new.                   --Locke.
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   6. To remain for the purpose of; to wait for. "I stay dinner
      there." --Shak.
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   7. To cause to cease; to put an end to.
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            Stay your strife.                     --Shak.
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            For flattering planets seemed to say
            This child should ills of ages stay.  --Emerson.
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   8. (Engin.) To fasten or secure with stays; as, to stay a
      flat sheet in a steam boiler.
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   9. (Naut.) To tack, as a vessel, so that the other side of
      the vessel shall be presented to the wind.
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   To stay a mast (Naut.), to incline it forward or aft, or to
      one side, by the stays and backstays.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Stay \Stay\ (st[=a]), n. [AS. staeg, akin to D., G., Icel., Sw.,
   & Dan. stag; cf. OF. estai, F. ['e]tai, of Teutonic origin.]
   (Naut.)
   A large, strong rope, employed to support a mast, by being
   extended from the head of one mast down to some other, or to
   some part of the vessel. Those which lead forward are called
   fore-and-aft stays; those which lead to the vessel's side are
   called backstays. See Illust. of Ship.
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   In stays, or Hove in stays (Naut.), in the act or
      situation of staying, or going about from one tack to
      another. --R. H. Dana, Jr.

   Stay holes (Naut.), openings in the edge of a staysail
      through which the hanks pass which join it to the stay.

   Stay tackle (Naut.), a tackle attached to a stay and used
      for hoisting or lowering heavy articles over the side.

   To miss stays (Naut.), to fail in the attempt to go about.
      --Totten.

   Triatic stay (Naut.), a rope secured at the ends to the
      heads of the foremast and mainmast with thimbles spliced
      to its bight into which the stay tackles hook.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Stay \Stay\ (st[=a]), v. i. [[root]163. See Stay to hold up,
   prop.]
   1. To remain; to continue in a place; to abide fixed for a
      space of time; to stop; to stand still.
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            She would command the hasty sun to stay. --Spenser.
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            Stay, I command you; stay and hear me first.
                                                  --Dryden.
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            I stay a little longer, as one stays
            To cover up the embers that still burn.
                                                  --Longfellow.
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   2. To continue in a state.
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            The flames augment, and stay
            At their full height, then languish to decay.
                                                  --Dryden.
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   3. To wait; to attend; to forbear to act.
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            I 'll tell thee all my whole device
            When I am in my coach, which stays for us. --Shak.
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            The father can not stay any longer for the fortune.
                                                  --Locke.
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   4. To dwell; to tarry; to linger.
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            I must stay a little on one action.   --Dryden.
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   5. To rest; to depend; to rely; to stand; to insist.
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            I stay here on my bond.               --Shak.
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            Ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and
            perverseness, and stay thereon.       --Isa. xxx.
                                                  12.
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   6. To come to an end; to cease; as, that day the storm
      stayed. [Archaic]
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            Here my commission stays.             --Shak.
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   7. To hold out in a race or other contest; as, a horse stays
      well. [Colloq.]
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   8. (Naut.) To change tack, as a ship.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Stay \Stay\, n. [Cf. OF. estai, F. ['e]tai support, and E. stay
   a rope to support a mast.]
   1. That which serves as a prop; a support. "My only strength
      and stay." --Milton.
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            Trees serve as so many stays for their vines.
                                                  --Addison.
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            Lord Liverpool is the single stay of this ministry.
                                                  --Coleridge.
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   2. pl. A corset stiffened with whalebone or other material,
      worn by women, and rarely by men.
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            How the strait stays the slender waist constrain.
                                                  --Gay.
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   3. Continuance in a place; abode for a space of time;
      sojourn; as, you make a short stay in this city.
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            Make haste, and leave thy business and thy care;
            No mortal interest can be worth thy stay. --Dryden.
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            Embrace the hero and his stay implore. --Waller.
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   4. Cessation of motion or progression; stand; stop.
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            Made of sphere metal, never to decay
            Until his revolution was at stay.     --Milton.
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            Affairs of state seemed rather to stand at a stay.
                                                  --Hayward.
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   5. Hindrance; let; check. [Obs.]
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            They were able to read good authors without any
            stay, if the book were not false.     --Robynson
                                                  (More's
                                                  Utopia).
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   6. Restraint of passion; moderation; caution; steadiness;
      sobriety. [Obs.] "Not grudging that thy lust hath bounds
      and stays." --Herbert.
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            The wisdom, stay, and moderation of the king.
                                                  --Bacon.
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            With prudent stay he long deferred
            The rough contention.                 --Philips.
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   7. (Engin.) Strictly, a part in tension to hold the parts
      together, or stiffen them.
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   Stay bolt (Mech.), a bolt or short rod, connecting opposite
      plates, so as to prevent them from being bulged out when
      acted upon by a pressure which tends to force them apart,
      as in the leg of a steam boiler.

   Stay busk, a stiff piece of wood, steel, or whalebone, for
      the front support of a woman's stays. Cf. Busk.

   Stay rod, a rod which acts as a stay, particularly in a
      steam boiler.
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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

stay
    n 1: continuing or remaining in a place or state; "they had a
         nice stay in Paris"; "a lengthy hospital stay"; "a four-
         month stay in bankruptcy court"
    2: the state of inactivity following an interruption; "the
       negotiations were in arrest"; "held them in check"; "during
       the halt he got some lunch"; "the momentary stay enabled him
       to escape the blow"; "he spent the entire stop in his seat"
       [syn: arrest, check, halt, hitch, stay, stop,
       stoppage]
    3: a judicial order forbidding some action until an event occurs
       or the order is lifted; "the Supreme Court has the power to
       stay an injunction pending an appeal to the whole Court"
    4: a thin strip of metal or bone that is used to stiffen a
       garment (e.g. a corset)
    5: (nautical) brace consisting of a heavy rope or wire cable
       used as a support for a mast or spar
    v 1: stay the same; remain in a certain state; "The dress
         remained wet after repeated attempts to dry it"; "rest
         assured"; "stay alone"; "He remained unmoved by her tears";
         "The bad weather continued for another week" [syn: stay,
         remain, rest] [ant: change]
    2: stay put (in a certain place); "We are staying in Detroit; we
       are not moving to Cincinnati"; "Stay put in the corner
       here!"; "Stick around and you will learn something!" [syn:
       stay, stick, stick around, stay put] [ant: move]
    3: dwell; "You can stay with me while you are in town"; "stay a
       bit longer--the day is still young" [syn: bide, abide,
       stay]
    4: continue in a place, position, or situation; "After
       graduation, she stayed on in Cambridge as a student adviser";
       "Stay with me, please"; "despite student protests, he
       remained Dean for another year"; "She continued as deputy
       mayor for another year" [syn: stay, stay on, continue,
       remain]
    5: remain behind; "I had to stay at home and watch the children"
       [ant: depart, quit, take leave]
    6: stop or halt; "Please stay the bloodshed!" [syn: stay,
       detain, delay]
    7: stay behind; "The smell stayed in the room"; "The hostility
       remained long after they made up" [syn: persist, remain,
       stay]
    8: hang on during a trial of endurance; "ride out the storm"
       [syn: last out, stay, ride out, outride]
    9: stop a judicial process; "The judge stayed the execution
       order"
    10: fasten with stays
    11: overcome or allay; "quell my hunger" [syn: quell, stay,
        appease]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

572 Moby Thesaurus words for "stay":
   abandon, abeyance, abide, abort, adhere, adjourn, advocate,
   afford support, afterthought, agglomerate, alpenstock, amnesty,
   anchor, arm, arrest, arrestation, athletic supporter, await, back,
   back up, backbone, backing, backpedal, backwater, bandeau, bar,
   be still, bear, bear up, bearer, bearing rein, belay, bell, berth,
   bide, bide the issue, billet at, bind, bit, bivouac, block,
   block up, blockade, blockage, bolster, bolster up, bottom, bra,
   brace, bracer, bracket, brake, brassiere, break, breath, breather,
   breathing place, breathing space, breathing spell, breathing time,
   bring to, bring up short, bunch, bung, bunk, buoy up,
   bureaucratic delay, burrow, buttress, cable, caesura, camp, cancel,
   cane, carrier, carry, carry on, caulk, cease, cease not,
   cease-fire, cervix, chain, check, checkmate, checkrein, chink,
   chock, choke, choke off, choke up, cigarette break, clasp, cleave,
   clinch, cling, cling to, clip the wings, clog, clog up, clot,
   cluster, coagulate, coast, cocktail hour, coffee break, cohabit,
   cohere, colonize, column, come to anchor, confine, congeal,
   congest, conglomerate, constipate, continue, continue to be, cork,
   corselet, corset, countercheck, cover, cradle, crook, crutch, curb,
   curb bit, cushion, cut it out, cut short, cutoff, dally, dam,
   dam up, damper, dawdle, day off, dead stop, deadlock, debarment,
   decelerate, defeat time, defer, deferment, deferral, defy time,
   delay, delayage, delayed reaction, desist, detain, detention,
   deter, determent, deterrence, dillydally, discontinuance,
   discontinuation, discontinue, discourage, discouragement,
   domesticate, domicile, domiciliate, doorstop, doss down,
   double take, downtime, drag, drag on, drag out, drag sail,
   dragging, draw rein, drift anchor, drift sail, drogue, drop,
   drop anchor, drop it, dwell, ease off, ease up, embrace, end,
   endgame, ending, endure, enforced respite, ensconce, establish,
   establish residence, estoppel, exemption, exist, extend, fetter,
   fill, fill up, final whistle, foil, forbiddance, foreclosure,
   forestalling, forestay, foul, found, foundation garment, freeze,
   freeze to, fulcrum, full stop, gird, girdle, give over,
   give support, go along, go on, grasp, grinding halt, ground,
   grow together, gun, guy, guywire, halt, hamper, hang, hang about,
   hang around, hang fire, hang on, hang out, hang together, hang up,
   hang-up, happy hour, have done with, hesitation, hinder, hindrance,
   hive, hold, hold back, hold everything, hold in check, hold off,
   hold on, hold out, hold over, hold steady, hold together, hold up,
   hold your horses, holdback, holdup, holiday, hug, immunity, impede,
   impunity, indemnity, inhabit, interim, interlude, intermezzo,
   intermission, intermittence, interrupt, interruption, interval,
   jam, jock, jockstrap, jog on, keep, keep afloat, keep back,
   keep going, keep house, keep on, keep quiet, keep up, knock it off,
   lag, lagging, lapse, last, last long, last out, lay aside, lay by,
   lay off, lay over, layoff, layover, leave off, lend support,
   let down, let up, letup, lie still, line, linger, live, live at,
   live on, live through, locate, lockout, lodge, logjam, loiter,
   lose ground, lose momentum, lose speed, lull, mainstay, maintain,
   maintainer, make late, mark time, martingale, mass, mast, moderate,
   moor, moratorium, move, neck, nest, never cease, nolle prosequi,
   non prosequitur, nonprosecution, not breathe, not stir, obstipate,
   obstruct, obstruction, obviation, occupy, pack, paperasserie, park,
   pause, pelham, people, perch, perdure, perennate, persist,
   pigeonhole, pillow, plug, plug up, populate, postpone,
   postponement, preclusion, predicate, prevail, prevent, prevention,
   procrastinate, prohibition, prolong, prop, prorogate, prorogue,
   protract, pull up, push aside, put aside, put off, put on ice,
   put paid to, quit, recess, red tape, red-tapeism, red-tapery, reef,
   refrain, rein in, reinforce, reinforcement, reinforcer, relax,
   relinquish, relocate, remain, remain motionless, remission, remora,
   renounce, repose, reprieve, reserve, reside, respite, rest,
   resting place, retard, retardance, retardation, rigging, room,
   roost, rope, run, run on, scotch, scrub, sea anchor, secure, set,
   set aside, set back, set by, set up housekeeping, set up shop,
   settle, settle down, shackle, shelve, shift off, shore, shore up,
   shoulder, shroud, sit down, sit tight, sit up, sit up for,
   sit-down strike, slack off, slack up, slacken, sleep on, slog on,
   slow, slow down, slow up, slow-up, slowdown, slowness, snaffle,
   sojourn, sojournment, solidify, spell, spile, spine, spoke, sprit,
   squat, staff, stagger on, stalemate, stall, stanch, stand,
   stand fast, stand firm, stand over, stand still, stand-down,
   standing rigging, standoff, standstill, stave, stave off, stay at,
   stay of execution, stay on, stay over, stay put, stay up,
   stay up for, stayover, stays, stem, stem the tide, stench, stick,
   stick around, stick fast, stick together, stiffener, stillstand,
   stop, stop cold, stop dead, stop over, stop short, stop up,
   stop-off, stopover, stoppage, stopper, stopping, stopple,
   strengthen, strengthener, stretch out, strike, strike root, stuff,
   stuff up, stymie, subsidize, subsist, subvention, support,
   supporter, surcease, survive, suspend, suspension, sustain,
   sustainer, sweat, sweat it out, sweat out, table, take a recess,
   take hold of, take in sail, take residence at, take root,
   take time, take up residence, tarry, tea break, tenant, terminate,
   throttle down, thwart, tide over, tie-up, time lag, time out,
   trammel, tread water, truce, underbrace, undergird, underlie,
   underpin, underpinning, underset, upbear, uphold, upholder, upkeep,
   vacation, visit, wait, wait a minute, wait and see, wait for,
   wait on, wait up for, waive, walking stick, walkout, watch,
   watch and wait, wear, work stoppage