Hold word meaning and definition

[noun] the act of grasping; "he released his clasp on my arm"; "he has a strong grip for an old man"; "she kept a firm hold on the railing"
[noun] the space in a ship or aircraft for storing cargo
[noun] the appendage to an object that is designed to be held in order to use or move it; "he grabbed the hammer by the handle"; "it was an old briefcase but it still had
[noun] a cell in a jail or prison
[noun] (archaic) a stronghold
[noun] power by which something or someone is affected or dominated; "he has a hold over them"
[noun] understanding of the nature or meaning or quality or magnitude of something; "he has a good grasp of accounting practices"
[noun] a state of being confined (usually for a short time); "his detention was politically motivated"; "the prisoner is on hold"; "he is in the custody of police"
[noun] time during which some action is awaited; "instant replay caused too long a delay"; "he ordered a hold in the action"
[verb] keep from exhaling or expelling; "hold your breath"
[verb] remain committed to; "I hold to these ideas"
[verb] assert or affirm; "Rousseau's philosophy holds that people are inherently good"
[verb] keep in mind or convey as a conviction or view; "take for granted"; "view as important"; "hold these truths to be self-evident"; "I hold him personally responsible"
[verb] hold the attention of; "The soprano held the audience"; "This story held our interest"; "She can hold an audience spellbound"
[verb] be in accord; be in agreement; "We agreed on the terms of the settlement"; "I can't agree with you!"; "I hold with those you say life is sacred"; "Both philosophers concord on this point"
[verb] declare to be; "She was declared incompetent"; "judge held that the defendant was innocent"
[verb] bind by an obligation; cause to be indebted; "He's held by a contract"; "I'll hold you by your promise"
[verb] protect against a challenge or attack; "Hold that position behind the trees!"; "Hold the bridge against the enemy's attacks"
[verb] aim, point, or direct; "Hold the fire extinguisher directly on the flames"
[verb] drink alcohol without showing ill effects; "He can hold his liquor"; "he had drunk more than he could carry"

\Hold\, n. [D. hol hole, hollow. See {Hole}.] (Naut.) The whole interior portion of a vessel below the lower deck, in which the cargo is stowed.
\Hold\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Held}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Holding}. {Holden}, p. p., is obs. in elegant writing, though still used in legal language.] [OE. haldan, D. houden, OHG. hoten, Icel. halda, Dan. holde, Sw. h[*a]lla, Goth. haldan to feed, tend (the cattle); of unknown origin. Gf. {Avast}, {Halt}, {Hod}.] 1. To cause to remain in a given situation, position, or relation, within certain limits, or the like; to prevent from falling or escaping; to sustain; to restrain; to keep in the grasp; to retain. The loops held one curtain to another. --Ex. xxxvi. 12. Thy right hand shall hold me. --Ps. cxxxix. 10. They all hold swords, being expert in war. --Cant. iii. 8. In vain he seeks, that having can not hold. --Spenser. France, thou mayst hold a serpent by the tongue, . . . A fasting tiger safer by the tooth, Than keep in peace that hand which thou dost hold. --Shak. 2. To retain in one's keeping; to maintain possession of, or authority over; not to give up or relinquish; to keep; to defend. We mean to hold what anciently we claim Of deity or empire. --Milton. 3. To have; to possess; to be in possession of; to occupy; to derive title to; as, to hold office. This noble merchant held a noble house. --Chaucer. Of him to hold his seigniory for a yearly tribute. --Knolles. And now the strand, and now the plain, they held. --Dryden. 4. To impose restraint upon; to limit in motion or action; to bind legally or morally; to confine; to restrain. We can not hold mortality's strong hand. --Shak. Death! what do'st? O,hold thy blow. --Grashaw. He hat not sufficient judgment and self-command to hold his tongue. --Macaulay. 5. To maintain in being or action; to carry on; to prosecute, as a course of conduct or an argument; to continue; to sustain. Hold not thy peace, and be not still. --Ps. lxxxiii. 1. Seedtime and harvest, heat and hoary frost, Shall hold their course. --Milton. 6. To prosecute, have, take, or join in, as something which is the result of united action; as to, hold a meeting, a festival, a session, etc.; hence, to direct and bring about officially; to conduct or preside at; as, the general held a council of war; a judge holds a court; a clergyman holds a service. I would hold more talk with thee. --Shak. 7. To receive and retain; to contain as a vessel; as, this pail holds milk; hence, to be able to receive and retain; to have capacity or containing power for. Broken cisterns that can hold no water. --Jer. ii. 13. One sees more devils than vast hell can hold. --Shak. 8. To accept, as an opinion; to be the adherent of, openly or privately; to persist in, as a purpose; to maintain; to sustain. Stand fast and hold the traditions which ye have been taught. --2 Thes. ii.15. But still he held his purpose to depart. --Dryden. 9. To consider; to regard; to esteem; to account; to think; to judge. I hold him but a fool. --Shak. I shall never hold that man my friend. --Shak. The Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. --Ex. xx. 7. 10. To bear, carry, or manage; as he holds himself erect; he holds his head high. Let him hold his fingers thus. --Shak. {To hold a wager}, to lay or hazard a wager. --Swift. {To hold forth}, to offer; to exhibit; to propose; to put forward. ``The propositions which books hold forth and pretend to teach.'' --Locke. {To held in}, to restrain; to curd. {To hold in hand}, to toy with; to keep in expectation; to have in one's power. [Obs.] O, fie! to receive favors, return falsehoods, And hold a lady in hand. --Beaw. & Fl. {To hold in play}, to keep under control; to dally with. --Macaulay. {To hold off}, to keep at a distance. {To hold on}, to hold in being, continuance or position; as, to hold a rider on. {To hold one's day}, to keep one's appointment. [Obs.] --Chaucer. {To hold one's own}.
(a) To keep good one's present condition absolutely or relatively; not to fall off, or to lose ground; as, a ship holds her own when she does not lose ground in a race or chase; a man holds his own when he does not lose strength or weight. {To hold one's peace}, to keep silence. {To hold out}.
(a) To extend; to offer. ``Fortune holds out these to you as rewards.'' --B. Jonson.
(b) To continue to do or to suffer; to endure. ``He can not long hold out these pangs.'' --Shak. {To hold up}.
(a) To raise; to lift; as, hold up your head.
(b) To support; to sustain. ``He holds himself up in virtue.''--Sir P. Sidney.
(c) To exhibit; to display; as, he was held up as an example.
(d) To rein in; to check; to halt; as, hold up your horses. {To hold water}.
(a) Literally, to retain water without leaking; hence (Fig.), to be whole, sound, consistent, without gaps or holes; -- commonly used in a negative sense; as, his statements will not hold water. [Collog.]
(b) (Naut.) To hold the oars steady in the water, thus checking the headway of a boat.
\Hold\, n. i. In general, to keep one's self in a given position or condition; to remain fixed. Hence: 1. Not to more; to halt; to stop;-mostly in the imperative. And damned be him that first cries, ``Hold, enough!'' --Shak. 2. Not to give way; not to part or become separated; to remain unbroken or unsubdued. Our force by land hath nobly held. --Shak. 3. Not to fail or be found wanting; to continue; to last; to endure a test or trial; to abide; to persist. While our obedience holds. --Milton. The rule holds in land as all other commodities. --Locke. 4. Not to fall away, desert, or prove recreant; to remain attached; to cleave;-often with with, to, or for. He will hold to the one and despise the other. --Matt. vi. 24 5. To restrain one's self; to refrain. His dauntless heart would fain have held From weeping, but his eyes rebelled. --Dryden. 6. To derive right or title; -- generally with of. My crown is absolute, and holds of none. --Dryden. His imagination holds immediately from nature. --Hazlitt. {Hold on!} {Hold up!} wait; stop; forbear. [Collog] -- {To hold forth}, to speak in public; to harangue; to preach. --L'Estrange. {To hold in}, to restrain one's self; as, he wanted to laugh and could hardly hold in. {To hold off}, to keep at a distance. {To hold on}, to keep fast hold; to continue; to go on. ``The trade held on for many years,'' --Swift. {To hold out}, to last; to endure; to continue; to maintain one's self; not to yield or give way.

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