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.
Isabel Wang explained how governments’ efforts to intervene and prop up currencies or hold down interest rates might have the opposite effect.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 4, 2026
Back at my swimming class, I'm still struggling to hold down my fear.
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
The workers often juggle multiple aliases simultaneously, and can hold down several jobs under each stolen name.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
That could hold down returns in the second half of 2026.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
“I wanted to come, but your wife said I should hold down the fort.”
From "The Sun Is Also a Star" by Nicola Yoon
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.
