30 Expressions with “Hold”

30 Expressions with “Hold”

The verb “hold” makes a lot of expressions. In this lesson, you will find 30 expressions with “hold” in context – idioms, collocations and phrasal verbs.

If you decide to wait before taking action, it means you’re holding your fire.

If you watched the football match last night, you could see that the local team held the lead to the very end of the game. They definitely held all the aces (cards).

If you’re able to hold down a job despite difficulties, you should congratulate yourself.

Don’t let heavy thoughts ever get hold of you. Hold on to your goals and dreams. And hold fast to them.

How long can you hold your breath underwater? And who’s holding the world record in swimming this year?

When you’re unhappy, don’t hold back your sadness. Talk to a friend.

When you are in love, don’t hesitate to hold hands with your loved one and don’t forget to hold it tight! And of course, enjoy holding his/her gaze, which means that you are looking at each other’s eyes continuously.

If you are in the centre of attention, then you must be holding court or holding forth.

Don’t hurry, hold your horses!

The evil old Queen is beautiful, but she can’t hold a candle to Snow White.

If your child’s story about a broken window sounds a bit silly, then it doesn’t hold water.

If someone has a significant influence and power over something, then they hold sway. That’s how the Romans once held sway over a large area.

You may wish to say something out loud, but don’t! You’d better hold your tongue. You may also hold your peace if you don’t want to talk about a subject.

Hold on until the next time!

 

6 Phrasal Verbs with ‘Hold’

Here are six phrasal verbs with the verb hold:

HOLD TO – keep to something.

She was determined to hold to her decision.

Sally’s always held to her promises.

HOLD BACK – retreat.
Don’t hold back. Tell us what you know about it.
I tried to talk to him, but he held back immediately.

HOLD OFF – postpone, delay, cancel.
We should hold off on the project until they approve the funds.
They’ve held off buying a house until next year.

HOLD WITH – agree with, support.
I don’t hold with your suggestion.
If I weren’t your brother, I would never hold with your decision.

HOLD DOWN – limit.
Please, hold your voice down.
They held down the prices in order to sell more.

HOLD ON – wait, stay put.
Please hold on, I’ll be back in a minute.
Hold on a second, I need to answer the phone.

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