Translation of "hold" - English-Spanish dictionary

hold

verb uk ​ /həʊld/ us ​ /hoʊld/ past tense and past participle held

A2 to have something in your hand or arms

sostener, coger
He was holding a glass of wine.
She held the baby in her arms.

B1 to keep something in a particular position

sujetar, mantener
Can you hold the door open, please?
Hold your hand up if you know the answer.

B1 to organize an event

llevar a cabo, celebrar
They are holding an election.
The meeting will be held on Tuesday morning.

B1 to contain something

tener capacidad/cabida para
The bucket holds about ten litres.

› to keep someone in a place so that the person cannot leave

secuestrar, encarcelar
I was held prisoner in a tiny room.
hold it! informal

› used to tell someone to wait

¡espera!
Hold it! I’ve forgotten my coat.

Phrasal verb(s)

hold on
hold something/someone up
noun uk ​ /həʊld/ us ​ /hoʊld/

› [ no plural ] the act of holding something in your hand

sujeción
Keep a tight hold on your tickets.
catch, grab, etc. hold of something/someone

› to start holding something or someone

atrapar algo/a alguien
He tried to escape, but I grabbed hold of his jacket.
get hold of something

› to get something

hacerse con algo
I got hold of the book at the local library.
get hold of someone

› to manage to speak to someone

lograr hablar con alguien
I rang three times, but couldn’t get hold of her.

› an area on a plane or ship for storing things

bodega
a cargo hold

(Translation of “hold” from the Cambridge English-Spanish Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

hold

verb /həuld/ (past tense, past participle held /held/)

› to have in one’s hand(s) or between one’s hands

tener en las manos, agarrar, asir
He was holding a knife
Hold that dish with both hands
He held the little boy’s hand
He held the mouse by its tail.

› to have in a part, or between parts, of the body, or between parts of a tool etc

tener; aguantar
He held the pencil in his teeth
She was holding a pile of books in her arms
Hold the stamp with tweezers.

› to support or keep from moving, running away, falling etc

aguantar, soportar
What holds that shelf up?
He held the door closed by leaning against it
Hold your hands above your head
Hold his arms so that he can’t struggle.

› to remain in position, fixed etc when under strain

aguantar
I’ve tied the two pieces of string together, but I’m not sure the knot will hold
Will the anchor hold in a storm?

› to keep (a person) in some place or in one’s power

detener, retener
The police are holding a man for questioning in connection with the murder
He was held captive.

› to (be able to) contain

tener (una)capacidad de, contener
This jug holds two pints
You can’t hold water in a handkerchief
This drawer holds all my shirts.

› to cause to take place

tener lugar, celebrar, organizar
The meeting will be held next week
We’ll hold the meeting in the hall.

› to keep (oneself), or to be, in a particular state or condition

mantenerse
We’ll hold ourselves in readiness in case you send for us
She holds herself very erect.

› to have or be in (a job etc)

ocupar, desempeñar, ejercer
He held the position of company secretary for five years.

› to think strongly; to believe; to consider or regard

creer, considerar, estar seguro
I hold that this was the right decision
He holds me (to be) responsible for everyone’s mistakes
He is held in great respect
He holds certain very odd beliefs.

› to continue to be valid or apply

ser válido, tener validez
Our offer will hold until next week
These rules hold under all circumstances.

› (with to) to force (a person) to do something he has promised to do

hacer cumplir
I intend to hold him to his promises.

› to defend

defender
They held the castle against the enemy.

› not to be beaten by

resistir (frente)
The general realized that the soldiers could not hold the enemy for long.

› to keep (a person’s attention)

mantener
If you can’t hold your pupils’ attention, you can’t be a good teacher.

› to keep someone in a certain state

tener
Don’t hold us in suspense, what was the final decision?

› to celebrate

tener lugar, celebrarse
The festival is held on 24 June.

› to be the owner of

poseer, tener
He holds shares in this company.

› (of good weather) to continue

mantenerse, aguantar
I hope the weather holds until after the school sports.

› (also hold the line) (of a person who is making a telephone call) to wait

esperar, aguardar
Mr Brown is busy at the moment – will you hold or would you like him to call you back?

› to continue to sing

aguantar
Please hold that note for four whole beats.

› to keep (something)

guardar
They’ll hold your luggage at the station until you collect it.

› (of the future) to be going to produce

deparar
I wonder what the future holds for me?
-holder

› a person or thing that holds something

poseedor; portador; tenedor
a pen-holder
a ticket-holder (= a person who has a ticket for something).
hold-all noun

› a (usually large) bag with a zip for packing clothes etc into.

bolsa de viaje
get hold of

› to manage to speak to

ponerse en contacto con; localizar
I’ve been trying to get hold of you by phone all morning.

› to get, buy or obtain

adquirir; conseguir; procurarse
I’ve been trying to get hold of a copy of that book for years.
hold back phrasal verb

› to refuse to tell someone (something)

esconder, guardarse algo, ocultar
The police were convinced that the man was holding something back.

› to prevent from happening, being seen etc, with an effort

retener, contener(se), reprimir(se)
The little girl succeeded in holding back her tears.

› to prevent from making progress

refrenar, impedir
I meant to finish cleaning the house, but the children have held me back all morning.
hold down phrasal verb

› to keep or be allowed to stay in (a job)

conservar, mantener
He is incapable of holding down a job.
hold forth phrasal verb

› to talk or give one’s opinions, often loudly, at great length

perorar, hablar largo y tendido
The prime minister held forth for hours on the success of his government.
hold good

› to be true or valid; to apply

ser válido/aplicable
Does that rule hold good in every case?
hold it

› to stop or wait

espera
Hold it! Don’t start till I tell you to.
hold off phrasal verb

› (of weather) to stay away

mantener(se) alejado
I hope the rain holds off.

› to keep off; to fight successfully against

rechazar
The soldiers managed to hold off the enemy.
hold on phrasal verb

› (often with to) to keep (a grip on) (something)

agarrar(se), sujetar
She held on to me to stop herself slipping
I couldn’t hold on any longer, so I let go of the rope.

› to stop or wait

esperar
Hold on – I’m not quite ready yet
The operator asked the caller to hold on while she connected him.
hold out phrasal verb

› to continue to survive etc until help arrives

resistir, aguantar
The rescue team hoped the men in the boat could hold out till they arrived.

› to continue to fight against an enemy attack

resistir, aguantar
The soldiers held out for eight days.

› to be enough to last

aguantar, durar
Will our supplies hold out till the end of the month?
hold one’s own

› to be as successful in a fight, argument etc as one’s opponent

mantenerse firme
His opponents tried to prove his arguments wrong but he managed to hold his own.
hold one’s tongue

› to remain silent or stop talking

morderse la lengua
There were a lot of things I wanted to say, but I thought I’d better just hold my tongue.
hold up phrasal verb

› to stop or slow the progress of

retener
I’m sorry I’m late – I got held up at the office.

› to stop and rob

asaltar, atracar
The bandits held up the stagecoach.
hold-up noun

›

asalto, atraco
A two-vehicle collision northbound on the M5 has resulted in lane closures and traffic hold-ups.
hold with phrasal verb

› to approve of

estar de acuerdo con
He doesn’t hold with smoking.

(Translation of “hold” from the PASSWORD English-Spanish Dictionary © 2014 K Dictionaries Ltd)

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