hold down
Britishverb
-
to restrain or control
-
informal to manage to retain or keep possession of
to hold down two jobs at once
-
Also, keep down . Limit, restrain, as in Please hold down the noise . [First half of 1500s] Also see keep down .
-
Work at or discharge one's duties satisfactorily, as in He managed to hold down two jobs at the same time . [ Colloquial ; 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.
"Because her heart was working so hard and was enlarged she couldn't hold down much," explained Emily, adding she had to be tube-fed high-calorie formula.
From BBC • May 23, 2026
But can the company hold down utility bills?
From MarketWatch • May 18, 2026
The food maker is looking to hold down prices while navigating the fallout from the Iran war.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
And we spoke with a middle-aged woman with schizophrenia and panic disorder who lives with her brother’s family because she can’t hold down a job and fears being left alone in a nursing home.
From Salon • Apr. 29, 2026
I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes to hold down the puke.
From "The Honest Truth" by Dan Gemeinhart
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.
