HELD UP Synonyms: 240 Similar and Opposite Words

held up

verb

past tense of hold up

as in postponed

to assign to a later time held up mail delivery until we had a permanent address

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stopped

to bring (something) to a standstill traffic was held up for miles by the accident

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as in hampered

to create difficulty for the work or activity of if lack of transportation is the only thing holding you up, I can give you a ride

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as in survived

to continue to operate or to meet one's needs the air conditioner held up this year, but it's not going to make it through another summer

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as in remained

to remain indefinitely in existence or in the same state the storm's hurricane-force winds did not hold up once it hit the coast

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as in flew

to withstand scrutiny and gain acceptance or approval an argument that won't hold up in court

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of held up In a touching tribute, Saliba ran over to the sideline after scoring and held up the jersey of Ismaël Koné, the teammate who left the field on a stretcher minutes earlier after suffering what looked to be a serious leg injury. —

Andrew Greif, NBC news, 19 June 2026 Even Britain, long held up as the regulatory model, has slipped to 90-10, with unregulated books taking a double-digit share of that market for the first time. —

Boaz Sobrado, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026 And unlike most multi-goal leads in what has been a wild and thrilling series, this one held up, with Brandon Bussi finishing with 22 saves in his second career postseason start. —

Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2026 Iranian leadership complained that visas for key staff members were being held up and the tumult was disturbing its preparation for the tournament. —

Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 11 June 2026 Most likely, plenty of that has held up. —

Kansas City Star, 11 June 2026 Boston Police are looking for two robbers armed with a gun who held up a children's lemonade stand in South Boston. —

Tammy Mutasa, CBS News, 11 June 2026 But federal funding was held up for months, thanks to an environmental lawsuit by opponents of the facility. —

Eric Schlosser, The Atlantic, 4 June 2026 The ones that made the cut held up throughout a full day, were buildable, and worked on a variety of skin types. —

Alanna Martine Kilkeary, Glamour, 28 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for held up

Verb

Life in prison without parole Lawhead’s arraignment had been postponed twice before, so he was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday morning in Placer Superior Court.

— Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 16 June 2026
And what that means is that festering problems are postponed.

— Dana Taylor, USA Today, 16 June 2026