Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of verb hold_back

6 senses of hold back

Sense 1
check, turn back, arrest, stop, contain, hold back -- (hold back, as of a danger or an enemy; check the expansion or influence of; "Arrest the downward trend"; "Check the growth of communism in South East Asia"; "Contain the rebel movement"; "Turn back the tide of communism")
       => defend -- (be on the defensive; act against an attack)

Sense 2
restrain, keep, keep back, hold back -- (keep under control; keep in check; "suppress a smile"; "Keep your temper"; "keep your cool")
       => inhibit, bottle up, suppress -- (control and refrain from showing; of emotions, desires, impulses, or behavior)

Sense 3
forbear, hold back -- (refrain from doing; "she forbore a snicker")
       => refrain, forbear -- (resist doing something; "He refrained from hitting him back"; "she could not forbear weeping")

Sense 4
wait, hold off, hold back -- (wait before acting; "the scientists held off announcing their results until they repeated the experiment")
       => act, move -- (perform an action, or work out or perform (an action); "think before you act"; "We must move quickly"; "The governor should act on the new energy bill"; "The nanny acted quickly by grabbing the toddler and covering him with a wet towel")

Sense 5
retain, hold, keep back, hold back -- (secure and keep for possible future use or application; "The landlord retained the security deposit"; "I reserve the right to disagree")
       => keep, hold on -- (retain possession of; "Can I keep my old stuffed animals?"; "She kept her maiden name after she married")

Sense 6
conceal, hold back, hold in -- (hold back; keep from being perceived by others; "She conceals her anger well")