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held off; holding off; holds off
Definition of hold 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
Recent Examples on the Web In this situation, particle physicists should focus on developing new technologies that could bring colliders back in a reasonable price range and hold off digging more tunnels.
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Sabine Hossenfelder, Scientific American, "The World Doesn't Need a New, Gigantic Particle Collider," 19 June 2020 When the water temperatures are chilly, the first push of salmon may tend to hold off and mill just outside of the fishing districts and then enter the various systems in a mass.
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John Schandelmeier, Anchorage Daily News, "Warm days at Bristol Bay mean cold water and slow-arriving fish," 13 June 2020 But concert venues including Crescent Ballroom, Valley Bar and the Rebel Lounge continue to hold off on reopening.
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Ed Masley, azcentral, "Concerts return to metro Phoenix as Arizona reopens: Inside clubs, bars and music venues," 12 June 2020 Those are signs for concern, enough so that one advocacy group is urging the county to hold off on reopening.
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oregonlive, "Multnomah County ready to move forward with phase 1 reopening Friday; awaiting green light from the state," 11 June 2020 In a 13-2 vote, the council agreed to hold off on having the city manager change the department’s current budget, which was approved in September, based on unexpected costs.
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Hayat Norimine, Dallas News, "Dallas City Council delays approval of $6.5 million increase to DPD budget after calls to defund police," 10 June 2020 This Ohio State team should be talented enough to hold off that divisional challenge for at least one more season.
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Nathan Baird, cleveland, "Ohio State football should not dismiss emerging threat from Big Ten’s Wild West: Buckeye Take," 10 June 2020 Android 11's unveiling was then moved to last week, but Google made the right call to hold off and keep the focus on the protests around the country.
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Jacob Krol, CNN Underscored, "Android 11 is official. Here's what's new and how to get the beta," 10 June 2020 However, some police departments remain concerned about safety and want to hold off on interviews and searches and instead focus on surveillance.
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Beth Warren And Karol Suarez, USA TODAY, "Mexican cartels are stockpiling drugs and money amid COVID-19 pandemic," 8 June 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hold off.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Time Traveler for hold off
The first known use of hold off was in the 15th century
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