hold off (on)

as in to postpone
to assign to a later time we held off on accepting the invitation in the hopes that something better would come along

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hold off (on)
Verb
  • The city of Cudahy has postponed its Independence Day Celebration that was set for Thursday, July 3.
    Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2025
  • The item needs to come back to the commission for final approval, at which point it would be sent to voters on the November ballot — now in a special election since the main election has been postponed.
    Tess Riski, Miami Herald, 27 June 2025
Verb
  • Medical examiners ruled two other deaths in January and February to be from natural causes, but a Miami Herald investigation found evidence of substandard or delayed medical care.
    Claire Healy, Miami Herald, 1 July 2025
  • Unable to stop the march toward passage of the 940-page bill, the Democrats as the minority party in Congress is using the tools at its disposal to delay and drag out the process.
    Glen Luke Flanagan, Fortune, 30 June 2025
Verb
  • The highest annual salary in the NFL is Dak Prescott’s $60 million, and the richest MLB contract is Shohei Ohtani’s at $70 million per year, although 97% of that money is deferred, which lowers the present-day value of the deal.
    Lev Akabas, Sportico.com, 1 July 2025
  • The Pistons acknowledged there was an investigation ongoing but deferred further comment to the NBA.
    Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 29 June 2025
Verb
  • The New Day put over American Made, talking up the Creed’s amateur wrestling accolades as Cole accused the New Day of not wanting to face the War Raiders.
    Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 12 May 2025
  • Together, these buyers put over $21 billion in the U.S. housing market last year.
    Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 June 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Hold off (on).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hold%20off%20%28on%29. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.

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