hold down
Britishverb
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to restrain or control
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informal to manage to retain or keep possession of
to hold down two jobs at once
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Also, keep down . Limit, restrain, as in Please hold down the noise . [First half of 1500s] Also see keep down .
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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.
That could hold down returns in the second half of 2026.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
His first task was to help implement the unpopular Prices & Incomes Act, which sought to hold down wages to curb inflation.
From BBC ● Jun. 14, 2026
But can the company hold down utility bills?
From MarketWatch ● May 18, 2026
Still, the company said it helped hold down ticket prices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026
He couldn’t hold down a job, and before long, he was homeless.
From "A High Five for Glenn Burke" by Phil Bildner
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.
