held off

verb

past tense of hold off
1
as in turned back

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2
as in put off

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for held off
  1. turned back
  2. put off
  3. turned away
  4. broke off
  5. resisted
  6. deferred
  7. opposed
  8. postponed
Verb
  • Eventually, Guccione turned back on his stadium microphone and announced the run would count, leading to further boos.
    — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The proposal, which called for overhauling the judicial selection process and directly electing Supreme Court justices, was decisively turned back on Tuesday.
    — Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of turned back
Verb
  • Simply not responding is one way to avoid or put off having to deal with what may be an unwelcome request.
    — Austin Sarat, The Conversation, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Lower East Side handyman Raymond, meanwhile, was put off by the prices.
    — Anne Kadet, Curbed, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of put off
Verb
  • New Zealanders must now be registered and have their addresses and other details updated in the system 13 days before election day, or they will be turned away from polling places.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The coroner’s report said that Khalil died in the evening from cardiac arrest due to head trauma and severe bleeding, hours after paramedics initially entered the area and were turned away, said Human Rights Watch’s Lebanon Researcher Ramzi Kaiss.
    — Kareem Chehayeb, Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of turned away
Verb
  • In March 2023, for instance, Honduras broke off formal relations with Taiwan and established ties with Beijing.
    — Natalia Cote-Muñoz, Foreign Affairs, 3 Aug. 2026
  • In the red zone a few plays later, veteran free agent addition Cobie Durant picked off a Dak Prescott pass intended for CeeDee Lamb in the end zone where Durant broke off his assignment with good instincts and easily picked it off.
    — Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of broke off
Verb
  • Burbank locals have resisted growth in the past, said real estate consultant Chris Baer of Avison Young.
    — Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Maybe not While the AMA acknowledges that stigma affects clinician behavior and prescribing, the organization has long urged patience with the pace of reform and resisted efforts to mandate more rapid change.
    — Brian Mann, NPR, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of resisted
Verb
  • Because taxes are generally deferred until distributions are taken, the annual tax impact of interest income may be reduced.
    — David Kudla, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • In addition, opting for a simple immediate or deferred annuity may also help amplify income, the report states.
    — Lorie Konish, CNBC, 29 July 2026
Definition of deferred
Verb
  • Count Charlotte Sherbeyn, 59, among those opposed, though the longtime resident welcomes the economic boom promised by Natrium's boosters.
    — Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Many clergy bitterly opposed the handover of the villages and criticized Pashinyan, who came to power in the South Caucasus nation amid a wave of hopeful, pro-democracy protests that swept Armenia in 2018.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of opposed
Verb
  • Brook was set to face Eisa Al Dah in Dubai in a bout raising money for the Ricky Hatton Foundation, but the event was postponed and never rescheduled.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The protests over the shooting led to several nearby community events being canceled or postponed.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of postponed
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.

Browse Nearby Words

held (in)
held off
held off (on)
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Cite this Entry

“Held off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/held%20off. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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