hold out

verb

1. tr to offer or present
2. intr to last or endure
3. intr to continue to resist or stand firm, as a city under siege or a person refusing to succumb to persuasion
4. to withhold (something due or expected)
5. hold out for
   to wait patiently or uncompromisingly for (the fulfilment of one's demands)
6. hold out on informal.
   to delay in or keep from telling (a person) some new or important information

noun

1. a person, country, organization, etc, that continues to resist or refuses to change

   Honecker was one of the staunchest holdouts against reform

2. a person, country, organization, etc, that declines to cooperate or participate

   they remain the only holdouts to signing the accord

Example Sentences

I agree: women like sex, too, so they probably won't hold out forever.

From Salon

For a while, I held out hope that with time and credible information, he would somehow snap out of the ultra-conservative, extremist-leaning, blind loyalty he seems to have embraced.

From Salon

White working-class voters have, without question, rallied to the GOP in increasing numbers over the last decade-plus, but Democrats hold out eternal hope that the trend can be reversed.

From Salon

It is a question of how long they can hold out for, and then how many goals Manchester City will score.

From BBC

She said she had job opportunities at other area departments in her early 20s, but she held out for an offer from the LAPD.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• hold on
• withstand