hold back

2 meanings

Meanings
  1. 1 decide not to do or say something B2
  2. 2 stop someone or something from making progress B2
1 hold back

decide not to do or say something

B2

What does "hold back" mean in this sense?

To hold back in this sense means to stop yourself from doing, saying, or expressing something — usually because of hesitation, politeness, fear, or uncertainty. It suggests that an impulse or reaction was there, but you consciously chose to suppress it rather than let it out. The phrase captures an internal struggle: you wanted to speak, react, or respond, but something made you pause or stay quiet. It's widely used in emotional and interpersonal situations, such as biting your tongue in an argument or stopping yourself from asking a difficult question. Unlike simply not doing something, holding back implies that the action or emotion was close to the surface — you had to actively restrain it.

Examples

How to use it

hold back from + gerund

The most common pattern, used when you want to specify what action you stopped yourself from doing.

She held back from saying what she really thought during the meeting.

hold back (alone)

Used without a complement when the context already makes clear what is being suppressed or withheld.

He wanted to argue his point, but something made him hold back.

hold back tears / a laugh / a reaction

A fixed-like collocation where a noun describing an emotion or physical response follows directly, bridging the intransitive and transitive uses.

She held back tears as she read the letter from her old friend.

hold back out of + noun

Used to explain the reason or motivation behind the restraint.

I held back out of politeness, even though I disagreed with everything he said.

Common Collocations

hold back from saying somethinghold back from cryinghold back from askinghold back from reactinghold back tearshold back from telling someone

Common Mistakes

Wrong preposition: 'to' instead of 'from'

Learners often write 'hold back to do something' using an infinitive, but the correct pattern requires 'from' followed by a gerund (-ing form).

✗ I held back to say anything critical.
✓ I held back from saying anything critical.
Confusing with 'hold off'

'Hold off' means to deliberately delay or postpone an action, often with a practical or scheduling reason. 'Hold back' focuses on emotional restraint or hesitation — suppressing an impulse rather than simply rescheduling it.

✗ She held back on sending the complaint until she had more evidence.
✓ She held off on sending the complaint until she had more evidence.
Using an object with this intransitive sense

In this sense, 'hold back' does not take a direct object — the subject is restraining themselves. Adding an object makes the sentence shift to a different meaning (physically restraining someone or something).

✗ She held back herself from interrupting.
✓ She held back from interrupting.

Usage

This phrasal verb is neutral in register and works well in both spoken and written English. It often implies an emotional or social reason for restraining yourself, such as politeness, fear, or uncertainty.

2 hold sb/sth back

stop someone or something from making progress

B2

Sense 2: What does "hold sb/sth back" mean?

To hold someone or something back means to act as a force that stops them from making progress or reaching their potential. The thing doing the holding back is often abstract — fear, self-doubt, a lack of resources, or an outdated system — rather than a physical barrier. There is a sense of ongoing restraint, as if something is acting like a brake on what could otherwise move forward. This phrasal verb is especially common in motivational, business, and self-development contexts, where the idea is that a person or organisation is capable of more but is being prevented from achieving it. A very natural and frequent pattern is 'don't let [something] hold you back', which has an almost fixed, formulaic feel in coaching and inspirational language.

Examples

How to use it

hold + object + back (separated)

The most common structure, especially with short noun objects or when you want to emphasise what is being restrained.

A fear of failure was holding the whole team back.

hold + pronoun + back (obligatory separation)

When the object is a pronoun, it must go between 'hold' and 'back' — placing it after 'back' is not grammatical.

She had so much potential, but self-doubt was holding her back.

hold back + noun object (unseparated)

Used when the object is a longer noun phrase; keeping it after the particle sounds more natural in these cases.

Poor infrastructure continues to hold back economic development in the region.

be held back (by + cause)

The passive form is natural when the restraining force is vague, systemic, or more important to highlight than the agent.

Many talented people are held back by circumstances beyond their control.

don't let + object + hold + pronoun + back

A high-frequency motivational pattern used to encourage someone not to allow a negative factor to stop their progress.

Don't let one bad experience hold you back from trying again.

Common Collocations

fearlack of confidenceself-doubtcareerprogressgrowth

Common Mistakes

Pronoun placement

When the object is a pronoun (me, him, her, them, etc.), it must always go between 'hold' and 'back'. Placing the pronoun after 'back' is ungrammatical in English.

✗ Don't let doubt hold back you.
✓ Don't let doubt hold you back.
Confusing 'hold back' with 'set back'

'Set back' refers to a specific delay or reversal of progress that has already been made, while 'hold back' describes an ongoing force preventing forward movement in the first place. They are not always interchangeable.

✗ The new regulations held the project back by three months.
✓ The new regulations set the project back by three months.
Mixing up the different senses of 'hold back'

This phrasal verb has more than one meaning. In this sense, the object is always a person, group, or type of progress — not an emotion or feeling. If you want to say someone suppressed a feeling, that is a different use of the same form.

✗ She held back her career with tears. (confused mixture of senses)
✓ Her lack of confidence was holding back her career.

Usage

This phrasal verb is neutral in register and works in both spoken and written English. It is especially common in motivational, business, and self-development contexts, and frequently appears in the pattern 'don't let [something] hold you back'.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does 'hold back' always need 'from' after it?

No — 'from' is optional when the context is already clear. You can say 'I held back from asking' or simply 'I held back' and both are natural. The 'from + gerund' pattern is useful when you want to specify exactly what you stopped yourself from doing.

What kinds of things can you hold back from doing?

Almost any action or reaction that involves an impulse you suppress — speaking your mind, asking a question, crying, laughing, or confronting someone. The situations are usually emotional or interpersonal, and the key idea is that you felt the urge to do something but chose to restrain yourself.

Does 'hold back' have other meanings, or does it always mean hesitating?

There is another common meaning where 'hold back' is used with a direct object to mean physically or figuratively restraining someone or something — for example, 'The fence held back the water.' This page only covers the sense of restraining yourself or hesitating. The two meanings are usually easy to distinguish because this sense has no object.

Can I use 'hold back' to describe suppressing emotions specifically?

'Hold back tears' and 'hold back a laugh' are very natural and common. For suppressing emotions that stay purely internal with no hint of an action being withheld, 'hold in' (e.g. 'hold in your anger') is slightly more specific, but 'hold back' works naturally in most emotional contexts too.

Is 'hold back' mainly spoken, or can I use it in writing too?

It's neutral in tone and works well in both spoken and written English. You'll find it in everyday conversation, personal writing like diaries or emails, and also in journalism and literary prose when describing emotional restraint or deliberate hesitation.

Can 'hold back' be used in the passive?

Yes, the passive is very natural with this sense. It works especially well when the cause of the restraint is a vague force like circumstance, policy, or self-doubt rather than a specific person. For example: 'He felt he was being held back by the company's rigid structure.'

Does 'hold back' always refer to a person being prevented from progressing?

No — the object can also be an organisation, an economy, a project, or an abstract concept like growth or development. What matters is that something with forward potential is being restrained. For example, you can say 'outdated policies are holding back innovation' or 'limited funding is holding the research back.'

What kinds of things can 'hold someone back' in this sense?

The restraining force is very often something abstract: fear, self-doubt, lack of confidence, poor infrastructure, limited resources, or outdated policies are all very common. It is less typical for a specific person to be the subject, though it is not impossible.

Is 'what's holding you back?' a natural expression?

Yes, it is a very common and natural expression, particularly in coaching, job interviews, and persuasive contexts. It has an almost fixed, formulaic feel and is a great phrase to learn as a whole chunk alongside the full verb.

Does 'hold back' have other meanings I should know about?

Yes — the same form can mean suppressing an emotion (like holding back tears) or not giving your full effort or information (as in 'don't hold back, give it everything'). These are different senses, so pay attention to the object and context to work out which meaning is intended.

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