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
So Scherzer and Bassitt, held off the LDS roster, are back in play.
—
Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
The Tigers managed to hold off a pesky Manual team’s second-half comeback Friday, emerging on top 28-17.
—Rich Barak, Louisville Courier Journal, 11 Oct. 2025
If heavy rain is in the forecast, hold off on fertilizing until after the grass has had time to dry.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 9 Oct. 2025
And the White House has for days threatened layoffs across the government, only to hold off.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 9 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hold off
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Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
The Tigers managed to hold off a pesky Manual team’s second-half comeback Friday, emerging on top 28-17.
—Rich Barak, Louisville Courier Journal, 11 Oct. 2025
If heavy rain is in the forecast, hold off on fertilizing until after the grass has had time to dry.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 9 Oct. 2025
And the White House has for days threatened layoffs across the government, only to hold off.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 9 Oct. 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 14 Oct. 2025.
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