HELD (BACK) Synonyms: 107 Similar and Opposite Words

held back

verb

past tense of hold back

as in hampered

to create difficulty for the work or activity of the only thing holding them back from joining the swim team is lack of transportation

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in stifled

to refrain from openly showing or uttering held back her tears until she was alone

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 back The new on-pitch laws… There was confusion at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium in the first round of the Carabao Cup, when substitute Fin Cartwright was held back from entering the pitch straight away. — George Edwards, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026 Yet too many are held back by a lack of financial confidence. — Kate Hayward, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026 Chinese state media suggested the possibility of leveraging rare earths as retaliation, but Beijing still held back. — Gloria Xiong, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026 New equipment and technology have been installed in the temporary building rather than held back for the finished center. — Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 11 Aug. 2026 Severe drought in 2022 on Lake Mead, which is held back by the Hoover Dam, exposed human remains and forced water officials in Las Vegas to pump water from deeper within the reservoir to continue to supply water to millions of people. — Ty O'Neil, Fortune, 8 Aug. 2026 In the first quarter of 2026, when Honeywell Aerospace was still part of the Honeywell conglomerate, the company’s sales were held back by supply shortages for mechanical products. — Zev Fima,kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 2 Aug. 2026 As chair, Wicks has outsized influence over whether a bill gets held back, and the Appropriations Committee can do so without offering a public explanation. — Andrew Graham, Sacbee.com, 30 July 2026 Crump said this could be because parts were held back by the medical examiner in the first autopsy, which Mitchell explained was common while undergoing further testing. — Lorena O’Neil, Rolling Stone, 22 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for held back

Verb

But the lack of a proper contest between bat and ball in Pakistani domestic first-class cricket has starved locals of that preparation time and hampered the development of genuine pace.

— Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
However, difficult weather conditions hampered the search in the following days, as the service wrote in a subsequent update.

— Adam England, PEOPLE, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of hampered

Verb

Washington also seemed to open up the playbook, with downfield passing concepts that confused Miami defensive backs and pressure packages that stifled the Dolphins offensive line.

— David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026
Raman asserted that there have been only three Inside Safe operations in her district and that her committee has been stifled by inaction from the mayor.

— Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of stifled

Verb

Regulations still fail to properly safeguard community health, Alfaro said, especially for children whose development can be hindered after pesticide exposure.

— Vince Basada, Sacbee.com, 15 Aug. 2026
But Oleh’s transition did more or less coincide with the Russian invasion, which has severely hindered his ability to live freely and openly at a time when men are expected to serve their country in the armed forces.

— Guy Lodge, Variety, 8 Aug. 2026

Definition of hindered

Verb

Tests between -112°F and 68°F showed no exothermic peaks associated with water crystallization, indicating that ice formation was suppressed in the hydrogel.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 18 Aug. 2026
Ukraine's air force said Russia launched 147 drones of various types in its latest barrage, of which 111 were shot down or otherwise suppressed.

— David Brennan, ABC News, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of suppressed

Verb

Limited fiber-optic coverage left consumers with slow connections, which impeded digital transactions and the delivery of valuable offerings.

— Jim DeLoach, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Yet the setting of so many of the sculptures against the wall impeded the kind of looking the works demand.

— Ara H. Merjian, ARTnews.com, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of impeded

Verb

Nowhere is the gap between noise and signal wider than in the obsession that has swallowed every other story, which is AI.

— Nigel Morris, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
In an exam room at City of Hope Cancer Center Chicago, Gardner shook three light blue pills out of a bottle and, sipping water, swallowed them one at a time.

— Lisa Schencker, Chicago Tribune, 9 Aug. 2026

Definition of swallowed

Verb

One night earlier in the tour, a woman Usher had brought onstage rebuked him, which embarrassed him.

— Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2026
This isn’t a hypercar to smash lap records around the Nürburgring, but nor will it be embarrassed by a Porsche 911 GT3 at a track day.

— Tim Pitt, Robb Report, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of embarrassed

Verb

Fake, obstructed, and missing plates are a major concern with cars and undoubtedly would be with MMVs.

— Richard Robbins, New York Daily News, 18 Aug. 2026
The platform can travel in wheeled mode before switching to legged movement when surfaces become rough or obstructed.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 17 Aug. 2026