hold off
verb
held off; holding off; holds off
1
: to block from an objective : delay
2
: to defer action on : postpone
hold off a decision
3
: to fight to a standoff : withstand
: to defer or temporarily stop doing something
Examples of hold off in a Sentence
we held off on accepting the invitation in the hopes that something better would come along
Recent Examples on the Web
After holding off from casting any free-agent stones and turning to UCF’s RJ Harvey in April’s NFL draft, the Broncos’ backfield plans for 2025 seemed all but set.
—
Luca Evans, Denver Post, 4 June 2025
Its volcanism has made for the stuff of legends, as one eruption is suggested to have held off the army of Carthage (now northern Africa) in 396 B.C., according to the Associated Press.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 4 June 2025
Music thumped through the powerful speakers as specks of rain fell from the sky, but luckily the serious rain held off until much later in the evening.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 31 May 2025
Ishiba is also trying to hold off an increasingly desperate-for-trade-deal White House.
—William Pesek, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hold off
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Luca Evans, Denver Post, 4 June 2025
Its volcanism has made for the stuff of legends, as one eruption is suggested to have held off the army of Carthage (now northern Africa) in 396 B.C., according to the Associated Press.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 4 June 2025
Music thumped through the powerful speakers as specks of rain fell from the sky, but luckily the serious rain held off until much later in the evening.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 31 May 2025
Ishiba is also trying to hold off an increasingly desperate-for-trade-deal White House.
—William Pesek, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hold off
Cite this Entry
“Hold off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hold%20off. Accessed 12 Jun. 2025.
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