holdover

American  

[hohld-oh-ver] / ˈhoʊldˌoʊ vər /

noun

1. a person or thing remaining from a former period.

2. Printing. overset that can be kept for future use.

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Etymology

Origin of holdover

1885–1890, noun use of verb phrase hold over

Explanation

A holdover is something that has stuck around for a long time. A law that forbids women from wearing patent leather shoes in public is a holdover from a very different era. The noun holdover comes up often in politics. A member of a former president's cabinet who keeps her job even after a new president is elected may be referred to as a holdover from the previous administration. A gym teacher's habit of barking out instructions to his elementary school students might be a holdover from his army days.

Example Sentences

Instead it’s a holdover from a bygone era of the gold standard, fixed exchange rates and periodic panics about global liquidity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

The Palisades fire was a holdover from the Jan. 1 Lachman fire, which continued to smolder and burn underground until kicked up by heavy winds on Jan. 7.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 13, 2026

Miran can stay on as a holdover until a successor is confirmed, but that seat is spoken for—it is the vehicle for installing the new chair.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026

Companies have skimped on dividends amid an epic bull run for stock prices, leaving the S&P 500’s yield of just 1.1% looking like finance’s vestigial tailbone—an evolutionary holdover without a clear purpose.

From Barron's • Nov. 21, 2025

This spelling is a holdover from medieval times.

From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner