1
as in hampers
to create difficulty for the work or activity of
the only thing holding them back from joining the swim team is lack of transportation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stifles
to refrain from openly showing or uttering
held back her tears until she was alone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for holds back
Verb
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Damage to the blood-brain barrier leads to inflammation within the brain and hampers the clearance of waste products like beta-amyloid protein (seen in Alzheimer's disease).—
Colleen Doherty,
Verywell Health,
6 Nov. 2025 -
Maintain a safe distance from large vehicles - Trucks or buses can produce a water spray that hampers visibility.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Or to send any kind of message that stifles his defining disposition.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
22 Oct. 2025
-
The judge found that Google has been engaging in behavior that stifles competition to the detriment of online publishers that depend on the system for revenue.—
Michael Liedtke,
Fortune,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Martian atmosphere presents a major obstacle to safely and precisely landing on the surface, and also hinders any attempts to return contents (or people) back to Earth.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Nov. 2025
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Therefore, the siloed nature of retail, not a lack of skills or resources, will prove to be the most significant barrier that hinders progress.—
Raj Dhiman,
Sourcing Journal,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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When people without schizophrenia speak or prepare to speak, the brain region that plans movements suppresses signals in the auditory cortex.—
Hannah Seo,
Scientific American,
10 Nov. 2025
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The experimental once-weekly drug, eloralintide, belongs to the class of drugs that mimic the pancreatic hormone amylin which slows digestion and suppresses hunger.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Let go of whatever impedes your progress and growth.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
22 Oct. 2025
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If a mental image only impedes the human’s process of emulation, why should her mindedness make Celmins’s web less natural than the spider’s?—
Harmon Siegel,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Every wildfire that takes down a transmission line, every flood that swallows a road, every heatwave that makes a solar farm falter all slow the very systems meant to replace fossil fuels.—
Natalie Unterstell,
Time,
6 Nov. 2025
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Taroko Gorge, however, carves breathtaking grandeur from marble stone; a natural cathedral of cliffs, where suspension bridges sway above rapids and swallows dart through narrow canyons.—
Lewis Nunn,
Forbes.com,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Don't tail large vehicles closely - Trucks or buses can kick up a water spray that obstructs visibility.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
5 Nov. 2025
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Don't tail large vehicles closely - Trucks or buses can kick up a water spray that obstructs visibility.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Holds back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/holds%20back. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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