as in limiting
to set bounds or an upper limit for
efforts to hold down taxes keep running up against the legislature's ingrained unwillingness to cut spending
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Recent Examples of holding down
Martin Odegaard of Arsenal and West Ham’s Jean-Clair Todibo were seen grappling, before Trossard, with his back to goal, held Pablo around his waist, ahead of the West Ham striker then holding down Raya.
—
Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 12 May 2026
Southwest senior pitcher Alex Rico matched Kuhl inning for inning for much of the game, holding down the Chargers offense until the fifth.
—Jeffrey Perkins, San Antonio Express-News, 9 May 2026
Although Purdy is holding down the starting position and Mac Jones is entering the second and final year of a cheap backup contract, the players behind them are unproven.
—Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 23 Apr. 2026
In Normal, our guy plays Ulysses, a substitute sheriff who’s just holding down the fort for a few weeks until a new sheriff can be elected after the old one passed away under strange circumstances.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026
In a picture posted to animal control’s Facebook page, two strips of tape can be seen holding down the top of the bin.
—Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
Yeah, no one was holding down her legs.
—Peter Larsen, Daily News, 7 Mar. 2026
But caretaking responsibilities can make holding down a full-time job challenging, especially for people caring for older adults and raising children at the same time.
—Cathy Bussewitz, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2026
The progressive People's Party, which had been tipped to win the most seats, was holding down second place with 116 seats.
—Grant Peck, Arkansas Online, 9 Feb. 2026
Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 12 May 2026
Southwest senior pitcher Alex Rico matched Kuhl inning for inning for much of the game, holding down the Chargers offense until the fifth.
—Jeffrey Perkins, San Antonio Express-News, 9 May 2026
Although Purdy is holding down the starting position and Mac Jones is entering the second and final year of a cheap backup contract, the players behind them are unproven.
—Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 23 Apr. 2026
In Normal, our guy plays Ulysses, a substitute sheriff who’s just holding down the fort for a few weeks until a new sheriff can be elected after the old one passed away under strange circumstances.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 Apr. 2026
In a picture posted to animal control’s Facebook page, two strips of tape can be seen holding down the top of the bin.
—Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
Yeah, no one was holding down her legs.
—Peter Larsen, Daily News, 7 Mar. 2026
But caretaking responsibilities can make holding down a full-time job challenging, especially for people caring for older adults and raising children at the same time.
—Cathy Bussewitz, Fortune, 19 Feb. 2026
The progressive People's Party, which had been tipped to win the most seats, was holding down second place with 116 seats.
—Grant Peck, Arkansas Online, 9 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for holding down
Verb
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Many American farmers rely on fertilizer moving by barge up the Mississippi River ahead of the planting season, limiting their ability to defer purchases.—
Mohammed Sergie,
semafor.com,
14 May 2026
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The problem is that all the various strands — the parallel tales — dilute our access to the characters, limiting their dimensions.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
14 May 2026
Verb
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The United States has already demonstrated this with export controls on advanced chips, restricting which nations can develop certain AI capabilities.—
David Liberman,
Fortune,
16 May 2026
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The feature, introduced in late 2025, prevents mobile networks from pinpointing exact street addresses, instead restricting location data to a broader neighborhood.—
David Phelan,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Holding down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/holding%20down. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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