hold back

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As ice shelves become thinner and weaker, they lose some of their ability to hold back the glaciers behind them.

From Science Daily • May 10, 2026

“It kind of siphoned all of that pent-up, closeted stuff that you hold back, that you couldn’t freely express,” she said.

From Slate • May 4, 2026

F1 executives had come to a hard realization: If their high-octane enterprise was to survive another 70 years, then Formula One could no longer hold back the tide of electrification.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

The main risk isn’t so much its direct exposure to precious-metals prices, but how sharply lower gold or silver prices might limit sentiment toward the asset class and hold back transaction volumes, affecting earnings.

From Barron's • Apr. 16, 2026

I thought I was even going to cry, something I seldom do, but I managed to hold back.

From "Z for Zachariah" by Robert C. O’Brien