difficulties; refuse to yield: Painting the house is tiring, but if you hold on , the results are worth the effort. keep on—1. = hold on 2: The rain kept on , and the wind increased. There would be no flying that day. 2. = hold on 3: Turn left at the corner and keep on as far as the church. Keep right on to the end of the road. 3. = hold on 5: Even if you fail the examination again, you must try to keep on until you pass. 4. talk at length about smth.: Don’t keep on so. I know you want the car but we can’t afford it. hold on to someone • keep on to someone hold on to someone—keep one’s grip on a person and not let go: I managed to hold on — perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the fish held on to me—until we had him in the boat. keep on to someone—(also: keep on at someone) 1. reprimand or reproach a person: He kept on to her that she was not show- ing enough affection to him. 2. repeatedly ask a person to do smth.: His wife was transferred to the Psychiatric Ward, but she kept on to him to take her home. hold on to something • hold to something hold on to something—1. keep one’s grip on smth.; not let go of smth.: The boy held on to the bush until someone climbed down the cliff to rescue him. 2. not give up the own- ership of smth.: Letting your property enables you to hold on to your property and gain an additional income from rent. 3. (coll.) look after smth. which belongs to another person for a period of time: Will you hold on to this for me for a couple of days. 4. remain loyal or committed to ideas, principles, etc.: They hold on to these virtues with a rare tenacity. hold to something—1. = hold on to something 4: He could not switch beliefs just for the sake of a paycheck. His integrity demanded he hold to his convictions. 2. continue traveling in a certain direction: For half an hour the ship held to its course; then its bow swung in my direction. I had been sighted. hold one’s breath • save one’s breath hold one’s breath—1. be affected by a sudden emotion, such as amazement, delight, etc.: The sky broke like an egg into full sunset and the water caught fire. He held his breath . 2. (coll., often negat.) be waiting impatiently in expectation of smth.: I expect the mail to be delivered soon, but I am not holding my breath . save one’s breath—keep one’s advice, opinion, etc. for oneself for it is unlikely to be heeded: Anyways, I saved my breath from an argument and decided to rent from another company. Cf.: waste one’s breath—talk to a person without him paying any attention, or acting on the speaker’s advice: Every time I talk to Catherine about emigrating, I feel as if I’m wasting my breath . hold one’s hand • hold someone’s hand hold one’s hand—keep back; refrain from action: She knew when to hold her hand and when to pile on all her strength. hold someone’s hand—give guidance or moral support to a person in a difficult situation: I “held his hand ” to the best of my ability with school-girl French and passable Italian. hold one’s head down • keep one’s head down hold one’s head down—(also: hang one’s head down) let one’s head fall forward, usually when feeling sad or ashamed of one- self: This man was drinking booze and holding his head down in despair. He knew that he had wasted a lot of his life… keep one’s head down—1. = hold one’s head down: When he saw me, his shoulders drooped and he kept his head down in shame and fear, even as he sat down to eat. 2. avoid attention; remain inconspicuous: Walsh kept his head down , not speak- ing out publicly even during the embarrassing wildcat strike that paralyzed the airline. Note: Neither expression fully correlates in meaning with the phrase put one’s head down1. = hold one’s head down: Bill put down his head in mockery of the bull and grunted like him, whereat we laughed yet more. 2. go to sleep; take a nap: It was probably the first time he had been able to put his head down since the illness reached its most critical stages. 3. start to concentrate and work hard at smth.: They wanted me to put my head down and work so I could get into a good college and have a great career. hold one’s water • hold water hold one’s water—1. contain one’s urine: Eight hours is a long time to hold one’s water …. It is a comfort to know that one can if really necessary get access. 2. (U.S. sl.; imper.) be patient; stop making repeated requests: “Pass over them glasses will you?” “Just hold your water sailor, you’ll get your turn in a moment.” Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase hold one’s liquor— be not easily intoxicated by alcohol: The elder man stood erect in an attempt to show all that he could hold his liquor . hold water—(of an argument, idea, etc.) appear reasonable; agree with the facts (usually negat.): Close examination of the evidence reveals, however, that such claims simply don’t hold water . hold out • keep out hold out—1. (of food supplies, etc.) remain available; last: We have to cut our rations to try to make the food hold out till succor comes. 2. (of perishable products) remain fit for con- sumption or use: How long could the food hold out without refrigeration? 3. refuse to yield or submit: If we could hold out that long, we can hold out another couple of years. keep out—stay outside; remain at a distance from smth.: We noticed a small fenced off area…. Signs warned us to keep out , but curiosity got the better of me. hold someone up • keep someone up hold someone up—1. support a person physically; hold smb. upright: It took both of us to hold up the old man. 2. rob smb. using violence or threats: In Japan you won’t need to worry too much about being held up in the street and being robbed of your passport. 3. (hyperbolic) overcharge a person: I don’t eat at that restaurant anymore. They really held me up the last time I ate there. 4. detain a person; make smb. late: The traffic on the expressway held me up yesterday. keep someone up—1. = hold someone up 1: I could barely stand up myself, but I managed to keep up Ann until we got out of the smoke-filled room. 2. prevent smb. from going to bed; keep a person awake: “I hope I’m not keeping you up .” “No, we often keep up late.” See also: keep someone down / keep someone under. hold someone up as an example • make an example of someone hold someone up as an example—point out smb. as a good example: I was embarrassed when the supervisor held me up as an example of good time-keeping. make an example of someone—punish a person severely as a warning to other people: It was decided to make an example of some of the top conspirators. hold someone’s feet to the fire • light a fire under someone hold someone’s feet to the fire—(also: keep someone’s feet to the fire) pressure a person to undertake smth. (to make good on a promise, etc.): I’m not going to punch him in the nose, but can’t I hold his feet to the fire in a polite and gentle way? hold on to someone – 178 –