hang in

verb

hung in; hanging in; hangs in

intransitive verb

informal : to refuse to be discouraged or intimidated : to keep going, trying, or working in a difficult situation

… did not hang in long enough to win even a battle.

—Marvin E. Frankel

Hoping to hang in until some series he works on runs five years and makes him $50 million in syndication …

—Chris Chase

—often used in the phrase hang in there

If there was ever a mismatched couple it was this one, but the children begged them to hang in there.

—Joseph Wambaugh

If she hung in there long enough, he would change. It just took a lot of patience with a little reasoning.

—Gloria Naylor

Examples of hang in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The theft happened almost exactly one month before French investigators found the prints, which regularly hang in the restaurant L’Amandier, located in Mougins, the village where Picasso famously resided at the time of his death in 1973. — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 5 Nov. 2026

West’s signature long bright blue locks were left loose and hanging in a straight sheet with a middle part. — Arushi Jacob, Footwear News, 5 Nov. 2026

The fate of the judiciary now hangs in limbo, with severe consequences for whichever political faction is iced out of power. — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 4 Nov. 2026

Despite expressing her love for Cam, Aneha ultimately decided against getting married, leaving her fiancé emotional and their relationship hanging in the balance. — Deirdre Durkan, PEOPLE, 4 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1966, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

hang in

verb

informal

: to refuse to be discouraged or frightened

Hang in there, kid! Don't quit.