holding off

verb

present participle of hold off
1
as in turning back

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2
as in putting off

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Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for holding off
  1. turning back
  2. putting off
  3. turning away
  4. breaking off
  5. withstanding
  6. shelving
  7. resisting
  8. postponing
Verb
  • However, investors on Tuesday are turning back to semiconductors and power, electrical equipment, and liquid cooling providers like Eaton , which posted strong quarterly results and raised its full-year outlook.
    — Jeff Marks, CNBC, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Tide turns back to franchises Then the tide started turning back toward familiar waters.
    — Andrew McGowan, Fortune, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of turning back
Verb
  • All of this means Owens has had to take shifts in the kitchen, putting off her front-of-house duties and paperwork to her evenings and days off.
    — Ayesha Rascoe, NPR, 1 Nov. 2026
  • According to Singhal, common signs include procrastination, impatience, feeling overwhelmed, and putting off decisions altogether.
    — Kriti Kumar, Vogue, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of putting off
Verb
  • In July 2026, accounts from prospective commercial customers and satellite operators revealed that SpaceX had begun turning away Falcon 9 customers to focus its resources on the more capable Starship rocket.
    — Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti, The Conversation, 28 Oct. 2026
  • The party’s pro-Israel hawks say that turning away from Israel is out of step with the electorate.
    — Shelby Talcott, semafor.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of turning away
Verb
  • Mackert showed an exacting style, breaking off big runs and dishing out hard hits in short-yardage situations.
    — Patrick Z. McGavin, Chicago Tribune, 8 Nov. 2026
  • The Rams came out strong to start the second half, Corum breaking off a 23-yard touchdown run for a 17-9 lead.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of breaking off
Verb
  • Jayden Daniels has been playing some good football, not withstanding his brain cramp against the Giants.
    — Hank Gola, New York Daily News, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Their magnets must maintain precise field configurations while withstanding substantial mechanical stresses.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of withstanding
Verb
  • Give one small part another try before shelving the whole activity.
    — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Nov. 2026
  • The rate of development of new headsets has slowed, with many companies (including Apple) scaling back or shelving their efforts.
    — Tim Stevens, ArsTechnica, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of shelving
Verb
  • Police said he is wanted on a felony arrest warrant charging him with resisting police, disarming a police officer, escape from custody, and operating a vehicle as a habitual traffic violator.
    — Todd Feurer, CBS News, 11 Nov. 2026
  • Rajiv had pointed out the different colors of the water, the mood of the two rivers, one almost resisting merging with the other.
    — Sonia Gandhi, Vanity Fair, 10 Nov. 2026
Definition of resisting
Verb
  • The two show postponements come on the heels of Katseye postponing their show in Detroit earlier this week, mere hours before they were set to take the stage at Little Caesars Arena.
    — Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Instead of kicking back, most workers are postponing their move-out plans thanks to an affordability crisis pinching the wallets of everyday Americans.
    — Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of postponing
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

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

“Holding off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/holding%20off. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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