holding pattern

American  

noun

1. a traffic pattern for aircraft at a specified location holding point where they are ordered to remain until permitted to land or proceed.

2. a state or period in which no progress or change is made or planned.

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holding pattern British  

noun

1. the oval or circular path of an aircraft flying around an airport awaiting permission to land

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Etymology

Origin of holding pattern

First recorded in 1950–55

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

holding pattern

But since earning his master’s 11 months ago, he has lived in a monastic holding pattern.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 13, 2026

That’s the message retail investors are sending as fund flow data for September indicates a strong preference developing for exchange-traded funds focused on longer-duration Treasury bonds, while the equity market remains in a holding pattern.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

Waller said he would look for continued signs of disinflation in August price data before committing to a holding pattern.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and his seemingly supernatural competence at both city management and marketing, has laid a blueprint for kitchen-table progressives looking to bust out of the Trump-era holding pattern.

From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026

It wasn’t until the third holding pattern southwest of Kennedy Airport that Klotz told ATC that he didn’t think the plane had enough fuel to reach an alternative airport.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

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