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.
Meanwhile, Jeanie Buss, the late Lakers owner Jerry Buss’ daughter, is fighting to hold on to a piece of the Lakers against Jerry Buss’s five other children.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
The Houthis have been cementing their hold on the Bab Al-Mandab strait, a vital shipping corridor linking Europe and Asia that has been used as an alternative to Hormuz.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
“I don’t want to hold on to closed facilities,” Macomber said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
Gasly was never going to hold on to the lead, and the Alpine's lack of pace after his stunning qualifying performance, aided by compromises elsewhere, soon began to tell.
From BBC ● Sep. 6, 2026
“Just hold on, Res! I’ll let you know if I see anything.”
From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga
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.
