hold
HOLD meaning: a grasp or grip, an act of keeping something, or an order to reserve or delay it; the four-letter word scores 8 Scrabble points.
Verb 4 meanings
To grasp or grip.
“Hold the pencil like this.”
To contain or store.
“This package holds six bottles.”
To maintain or keep to a position or state.
“Hold my coat for me.”
To maintain or keep to particular opinions, promises, actions.
“She holds that passive index funds beat actively managed ones: she says that "set it and forget it," when done right, beats playing the market as a gambler.”
Noun 4 meanings
A grasp or grip.
“Keep a firm hold on the handlebars.”
An act or instance of holding.
“Can I have a hold of the baby?”
A place where animals are held for safety
An order that something is to be reserved or delayed, limiting or preventing how it can be dealt with.
“Senator X placed a hold on the bill, then went to the library and placed a hold on a book.”
Etymology
Derived from Middle English holden, derived from Old English healdan, derived from Proto-West Germanic *haldan, derived from Proto-Germanic *haldaną (“to tend, herd”), maybe derived from Proto-Indo-European *kel- (“to drive”). Doublet of halt.
Similar and opposite words
HOLD is a common four-letter English word, ranked 623 in the frequency file and recorded 262,367 times. Its meanings range from a physical grip to an order to pause or reserve something. That breadth makes it ordinary in conversation but flexible in clues: a puzzle may point to a hand, storage, or a delay.
HOLD at a glance
- HOLD is a four-letter word worth 8 Scrabble points before board bonuses.
- Its only anagram is DHOL.
- Among 22 one-letter neighbours are HELD, HOLE, TOLD, and GOLD.
- Twelve listed rhymes share its OLD ending, including COLD, BOLD, and BEHOLD.
What is the HOLD meaning in everyday use?
The core HOLD meaning is a grasp or grip: you hold a rail, a tool, or someone’s hand. The noun also names the act of keeping something in your possession. Those senses share one idea: maintaining contact or control, rather than simply touching something.
A hold can also be a place where animals are kept safely, or an instruction that delays or reserves an item. In travel and service contexts, “put it on hold” signals a pause, not a rejection. This range is why HOLD can clue either a physical space or a temporary stop.
A firm hold suggests control; a loose hold suggests contact without security, so the surrounding words change the force. That distinction can settle a crossword clue.
How does HOLD score and change with one letter?
For Scrabble, HOLD totals 8 points before board premiums: H supplies 4, O and L supply 1 apiece, and D adds 2. The H carries half the total, so placing that tile on a premium square matters more than stretching the low-value O or L. The score is concentrated in one letter.
Rearranging all four tiles produces one anagram, DHOL. Changing one letter opens 22 neighboring forms, including familiar HELD, HOLE, TOLD, GOLD, and COLD, alongside less everyday entries. Twelve listed rhymes end in the same OLD sound, with BEHOLD, UPHOLD, and UNFOLD extending the pattern.
For a player, HOLD meaning and tile value are separate checks: the recorded neighbour set includes unusual forms such as HOLK and HOND. Confirm uncommon alternatives against your game's dictionary; HOLD itself appears in Collins, NWL2023, and ENABLE.
Rhymes with hold
All rhymes- TOLD5
- GOLD6
- COLD7
- SOLD5
- HOUSEHOLD16
- BOLD7
- FOLD8
- THRESHOLD16
- MOLD7
- BEHOLD12
- UPHOLD12
- UNFOLD10
One letter away
Questions people ask
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