Lexic.us

Definition of Hold out

1. Verb. Thrust or extend out. "The bee exserted its sting"

2. Verb. Stand up or offer resistance to somebody or something.

3. Verb. Last and be usable. "The sheets didn't hold out"; "This dress wore well for almost ten years"

4. Verb. Wait uncompromisingly for something desirable. "They hold out a long time"; "He held out for the dessert and did not touch the cheeses"

5. Verb. Continue to live through hardship or adversity. "The business is going to hold out "; "How long can a person last without food and water?"

Definition of Hold out

1. Verb. (transitive) To hold (something) out; to extend (something) forward. ¹

2. Verb. (idiomatic often with ''for'') To wait, or refuse in hopes of getting something better (from a negotiation, etc.) ¹

3. Verb. (idiomatic) To survive, endure. ¹

4. Verb. (idiomatic usually with ''on'') To withhold something. ¹

5. Verb. (transitive) To set something aside or save it for later. ¹

6. Noun. (alternative spelling of holdout). ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Lexicographical Neighbors of Hold Out

hold off hold on hold one's breath hold one's head above water hold one's head high hold one's horses hold one's liquor hold one's nerve hold one's own hold one's pee

hold one's tongue hold one's urine hold one's water hold open hold out (current term) hold outs hold over hold over someone's head hold serve hold someone's feet to the fire

hold someone's hand hold still for hold sway hold that thought hold the cards hold the fort hold the line hold the phone hold the purse strings

Literary usage of Hold out

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant: Embracing English, American, and Anglo by Albert Barrère, Charles Godfrey Leland (1889)
"Then there was the sleeve hold-out, nearly as bad, and the different hold-outs to fasten to the edge of the table.—Slur. Hold the stage, to (theatrical), ..."

2. The Dictionary of National Biography by Sidney Lee (1908)
"Russia seemed to hold out the highest inducements, and, furnished with very strong recommendations to Sir James Harris, he arrived at St. Petersburg in May ..."

3. Publications by English Dialect Society (1850)
"... looking upon themselves undone, seeme desperately resolved to hold out to the last, tho sencible they cannot abide it," adds, " but, however, ..."

4. South Eastern Reporter by West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, West Publishing Company, South Carolina Supreme Court (1910)
"To permit this would be to allow the surety to perpetrate a fraud, to hold out a bond as In force, and on that basis secure the advantage derivable from a ..."

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