Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(a) to refuse to pay a debt or bill.

1876		St Louis Globe-Democrat 19 Jan. n.p.: He is told by his equally ‘busted’ companions to ‘stand him up,’ [i.e. a bartender] ‘give him the slip,’ ‘put up your educated forefinger at him’.
1882		Nat. Police Gaz. (NY) 11 Mar. 7/2: [He] ordered the best room In the house with Ihe shrewd ulterior design of ‘standing up’ mine host .

(b) (US und.) to rob, e.g. a train, an individual in the street.

1885

Nat. Police Gaz. (NY) 28 Nov. 9: [pic. caption] Stript To The Skin. Two Brooklyn Nymphs of the Highway ‘Stand-up’ a Little Five Year-old Urchin [Ibid] 19 Dec. 14/1: It is about time for some Jesse James to ‘stand up’ the far western trains.

(c) (orig. US) to fail to keep an appointment with someone.

1887		Abilene Reflector (KS) 19 May 7/3: The ‘chippy chaser,’ if successful in making the clandestine acquaintance he seeks, and in making an appointment for some future evening, is, as a rule, ‘stood up’ .
1906		‘O. Henry’ ‘The Love-Philtre of Ikey Schoenstein’ Four Million (1915) 122: It’s five hours yet till the time, and I’m afraid she’ll stand me up when it comes to the scratch.
1924		O.O. McIntyre New York Day by Day 13 Feb. [synd. col.] I, too, have been ‘stood up.’ Let us be disappointed together.
1931		D. Runyon ‘Hold ’Em, Yale!’ Runyon on Broadway (1954) 149: Here is a little doll who is stood up by her guy.
1940		R. Chandler Farewell, My Lovely (1949) 195: Are you aware, my good fellow, that you stood me up for an hour the other night?
1950		P. Hoskins No Hiding Place! 192/1: Stood me up. Broke the appointment.
1953		L. Uris Battle Cry (1964) 210: Olga is going to think I stood her up.
1965		C. Brown Manchild in the Promised Land (1969) 394: Baby, I couldn’t help standing you up.
1974		G.F. Newman You Flash Bastard 85: No great powers on Sneed’s part were needed to deduce that she was waiting tensely for a call, and had probably been stood up.
1989		Pileggi & Scorsese Goodfellas [film script] 32: When Friday night came around, Henry stood me up.
1996		J. Cameron It Was An Accident 31: Your Kelly gone and stood you up for a little German fucker.
2000		Indep. Rev. 17 Feb. 11: On Thursday Alice and Dale stood us up.
2021		J. Ellroy Widespread Panic 208: Stood up, stiffed, dropped dry, and jilted.

(d) (US black) to treat someone as second-rate, unimportant.

1944		Cab Calloway New Hepsters Dict. in Calloway (1976) 260: stand one up (v.): to play one cheap, to assume one is a cut-rate.
1944		‘Jiver’s Bible’ in D. Burley Orig. Hbk of Harlem Jive.

(e) to keep someone waiting.

1949

N. Algren Man with the Golden Arm 64: Standing her up for half an hour in front of the Pulaski.

(a) (US) to hold out for, to exert pressure on.

1889		Dead Bird (Sydney) 19 Oct. 2/1: A popular practice of the ladies of Whitechapel, London, is to demand money, and upon refusal charge the man who refuses to be ‘stood up’ as being Jack the Ripper.
1912		Van Loan ‘Little Sunset’ in Ten-Thousand-Dollar Arm 98: What’s biting you? Tryin’ to stand ’em up for more money?

(b) (orig. US) to withstand pressure, esp. police questioning or criminal intimidation.

1924		D. Hammett ‘Zigzags of Treachery’ in Nightmare Town (2001) 123: I was sure that she would stand up under any sort of an investigation.
1937		J. Curtis You’re in the Racket, Too 85: Skivvies often shopped a bloke though. They never seemed to be able to stand up against a bogey.
1950		Goldin et al. DAUL 208/2: Stand up, v. [...] 2. To hold to one’s testimony under fire. [...] . 4. To prove steadfast and loyal.
1955		B. Schulberg On the Waterfront (1964) 175: You stand up and I’ll stand up with you.
1969		‘Iceberg Slim’ Pimp 192: If she stands up, you got a whore and some real scratch.
1977		E. Bunker Animal Factory 120: If a youngster would stand up, they’d pretty much leave him alone.
1983		P. Dexter Gods’s Pocket 269: ‘We want you to know we 'preciate you not talkin' to the cops. You stood up’.
2000		Lehr & O’Neill Black Mass 116: Bulger was not ‘one of us’ who would automatically stand up if caught.