Archive for August, 2012

Phrasal verbs with hold

August 8th, 2012 in Expressions

Here is a list of phrasal verbs formed with the word hold.

Hold out

To hold out is to extend in front of you.

Holding out her hands, a little girl approached us.

Hold on

To hold on is to grip something tightly. Hold on can also mean ‘wait’.

Please hold on. I will be back in a minute.

Hold over

When something holds over it goes longer than planned.

Hold together

To hold together is to prevent something from coming apart.

Hold out on

To hold out on is to hide something.

‘Come on. You can’t hold out on me. Where were you last night?’

Hold off

To hold off is to delay.

We had to hold off buying a new car because we were short of money.

Hold out

To hold out is to resist.

Hold on to

To hold on to something is to grip it tightly

Hold on to the rope.

Hold back

To hold back is to show unwillingness to do something.

I don’t know what is holding him back.

To hold something back is to keep it secret.

To hold somebody back is to restrain them.

If his wife hadn’t held him back, he would have slapped the guy who had passed obscene comments on her.

Hold out

To hold out is to keep one’s position or strength.

Hold something over

To hold something over is to postpone it.

They had to hold the meeting over because of the chairman’s illness.