holdup
Americannoun
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holdups
plural
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a forcible stopping and robbing of a person.
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a stop or delay in the progress of something.
There was a holdup in the construction of the bridge.
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an instance of being charged excessively.
Usage
What does holdup mean? A holdup is a delay or something that causes a delay. It’s frequently used in the phrase What’s the holdup?—meaning “What’s the cause of the delay?”Holdup can also refer to a kind of robbery, typically in which the robber takes a person’s money by stopping them and threatening them with a weapon, especially a gun. In this sense, a holdup is also called a stickup. In both cases, the word is sometimes spelled hold-up. The phrase hold up can be used as a verb meaning to delay, to cause a delay, or to rob someone in a holdup. (It also has several other meanings.)Example: I asked him what the holdup was, and he told me that he was waiting for the designer to deliver the images.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of holdup
1830–40, noun use of verb phrase hold up
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.
See Examples For:
Measurement is a key holdup for some big brands because returns on creator campaigns can’t be quantified as easily as for traditional TV commercials.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026
But every year, thousands of refunds are held up, and the IRS isn’t required to process them within a certain period or provide information to taxpayers on what is responsible for the holdup.
From Barron's ● Mar. 28, 2026
“He didn’t know what the holdup was in getting back to them on which university could be sued.”
From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2025
Deliveries are also delayed due to a holdup in supplies of General Electric's F-404 engines for the jets.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2025
Harry scrambled around, trying to pick it all up before the dwarf started singing, causing something of a holdup in the corridor.
From "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" by J. K. Rowling
For weeks, McClain texted excuses about wire delays and holdups with other investors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
The report attributed the limbo to a variety of possible factors including indecision over whether to stay or go, holdups with insurance and financial instability.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2025
Those officials blamed most of the holdups on the humanitarian groups for not having enough capacity to get food and medicine in.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2024
However, she adds, no serious holdups are expected.
From BBC ● Nov. 22, 2023
First, if that package the holdups got had contained the money you could have swore it was a put-up job.
From The Coyote A Western Story by James Roberts
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
