hold on
Britishverb
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to maintain a firm grasp
she held on with all her strength
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to continue or persist
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(foll by to) to keep or retain
hold on to those stamps as they'll soon be valuable
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to keep a telephone line open
interjection
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Also, hold on to . Maintain one's grip, cling, as in Hold on to your hat in this wind , or The early Christians held on to their beliefs despite strong opposition . [Early 1500s]
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Continue to do something, persist, as in Please hold on for a while longer . [Late 1800s]
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Stop, wait, as in Hold on! We can't go past this gate . [Mid-1800s]
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Remain on a telephone line, as in If you can hold on a minute I'll go and find her . [Late 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He marveled at Epstein’s hold on so many people.
From Barron's • Mar. 31, 2026
That would have been one of the big takeaways from that tournament - the need to hold on to the energy and feelgood that got them there in the first place.
From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026
But why, oh why, do they hold on to Blake Treinen and Tanner Scott?
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 28, 2026
Shi upgraded Arm’s stock to buy from hold on Thursday — following Raymond James analyst Simon Leopold, who turned bullish on Wednesday.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 26, 2026
Jack managed to hold on to the Mirror as he fell, narrowly saving it from further damage by hitting the cracked and broken ground.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
