What is "holding"

Hold \Hold\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Held; p. pr. & vb. n. Holding. Holden, p. p., is obs. in elegant writing, though still used in legal language.] [OE. haldan, D. houden, OHG. hoten, Icel. halda, Dan. holde, Sw. h[*a]lla, Goth. haldan to feed, tend (the cattle); of unknown origin. Gf. Avast, Halt, Hod.]

1. To cause to remain in a given situation, position, or relation, within certain limits, or the like; to prevent from falling or escaping; to sustain; to restrain; to keep in the grasp; to retain.

   The loops held one curtain to another.
   --Ex. xxxvi. 1

2. Thy right hand shall hold me.
   --Ps. cxxxix. 10.

   They all hold swords, being expert in war.
   --Cant. iii. 8.

   In vain he seeks, that having can not hold.
   --Spenser.

   France, thou mayst hold a serpent by the tongue, . . . A fasting tiger safer by the tooth, Than keep in peace that hand which thou dost hold.
   --Shak.

   2. To retain in one's keeping; to maintain possession of, or authority over; not to give up or relinquish; to keep; to defend.

   We mean to hold what anciently we claim Of deity or empire.
   --Milton.

3. To have; to possess; to be in possession of; to occupy; to derive title to; as, to hold office.

   This noble merchant held a noble house.
   --Chaucer.

   Of him to hold his seigniory for a yearly tribute.
   --Knolles.

   And now the strand, and now the plain, they held.
   --Dryden.

4. To impose restraint upon; to limit in motion or action; to bind legally or morally; to confine; to restrain.

   We can not hold mortality's strong hand.
   --Shak.

   Death! what do'st? O, hold thy blow.
   --Grashaw.

   He had not sufficient judgment and self-command to hold his tongue.
   --Macaulay.

5. To maintain in being or action; to carry on; to prosecute, as a course of conduct or an argument; to continue; to sustain.

   Hold not thy peace, and be not still.
   --Ps. lxxxiii. 1.

   Seedtime and harvest, heat and hoary frost, Shall hold their course.
   --Milton.

6. To prosecute, have, take, or join in, as something which is the result of united action; as to, hold a meeting, a festival, a session, etc.; hence, to direct and bring about officially; to conduct or preside at; as, the general held a council of war; a judge holds a court; a clergyman holds a service.

   I would hold more talk with thee.
   --Shak.

7. To receive and retain; to contain as a vessel; as, this pail holds milk; hence, to be able to receive and retain; to have capacity or containing power for.

   Broken cisterns that can hold no water.
   --Jer. ii. 13.

   One sees more devils than vast hell can hold.
   --Shak.

8. To accept, as an opinion; to be the adherent of, openly or privately; to persist in, as a purpose; to maintain; to sustain.

   Stand fast and hold the traditions which ye have been taught.
   --2 Thes. ii.15.

   But still he held his purpose to depart.
   --Dryden.

9. To consider; to regard; to esteem; to account; to think; to judge.

   I hold him but a fool.
   --Shak.

   I shall never hold that man my friend.
   --Shak.

   The Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
   --Ex. xx. 7.

10. To bear, carry, or manage; as he holds himself erect; he holds his head high. Let him hold his fingers thus. --Shak. To hold a wager, to lay or hazard a wager. --Swift. To hold forth,

    1. v. t.to offer; to exhibit; to propose; to put forward. ``The propositions which books hold forth and pretend to teach.''
       --Locke.

    2. v. i. To talk at length; to harangue. To held in, to restrain; to curd. To hold in hand, to toy with; to keep in expectation; to have in one's power. [Obs.] O, fie! to receive favors, return falsehoods, And hold a lady in hand. --Beaw. & Fl. To hold in play, to keep under control; to dally with. --Macaulay. To hold off, to keep at a distance. To hold on, to hold in being, continuance or position; as, to hold a rider on. To hold one's day, to keep one's appointment. [Obs.] --Chaucer. To hold one's own. To keep good one's present condition absolutely or relatively; not to fall off, or to lose ground; as, a ship holds her own when she does not lose ground in a race or chase; a man holds his own when he does not lose strength or weight. To hold one's peace, to keep silence. To hold out.

       1. To extend; to offer. ``Fortune holds out these to you as rewards.''
          --B. Jonson.

       2. To continue to do or to suffer; to endure. ``He can not long hold out these pangs.'' --Shak. To hold up.

          1. To raise; to lift; as, hold up your head.

          2. To support; to sustain. ``He holds himself up in virtue.''
             --Sir P. Sidney.

    3. To exhibit; to display; as, he was held up as an example.

    4. To rein in; to check; to halt; as, hold up your horses.

    5. to rob, usually at gunpoint; -- often with the demand to ``hold up'' the hands.

    6. To delay. To hold water.

       1. Literally, to retain water without leaking; hence (Fig.), to be whole, sound, consistent, without gaps or holes; -- commonly used in a negative sense; as, his statements will not hold water. [Colloq.]

       2. (Naut.) To hold the oars steady in the water, thus checking the headway of a boat.

Holding \Hold"ing\, n.

1. The act or state of sustaining, grasping, or retaining.

2. A tenure; a farm or other estate held of another.

3. That which holds, binds, or influences.
   --Burke.

4. The burden or chorus of a song. [Obs.]
   --Shak.

   Holding note (Mus.), a note sustained in one part, while the other parts move.

early 13c., verbal noun of hold. As a football (soccer) penalty, from 1866. Meaning "property held," especially stock shares, is from 1570s.

n. 1 Something that one owns, especially stocks and bonds. 2 A determination of law made by a court. 3 A tenure; a farm or other estate held of another. 4 (context obsolete English) That which holds, binds, or influences. 5 (context obsolete English) logic; consistency. 6 (context obsolete English) The burden or chorus of a song. vb. (present participle of hold English)

adj. designed for (usually temporary) retention; "a holding pen"; "a retaining wall" [syn: retaining]

1. n. the act of keeping in your possession [syn: retention, keeping]

2. something owned; any tangible or intangible possession that is owned by someone; "that hat is my property"; "he is a man of property"; [syn: property, belongings, material possession]

The holding is a court's determination of a matter of law based on the issue presented in the particular case. In other words: under this law, with these facts, this result. It is the same as a 'decision' made by the judge; however "decision" can also refer to the judge's entire opinion, containing, for example, a discussion of facts, issues, and law as well as the holding.

Holding may refer to:

• Holding (law), the central determination in a judicial opinion
• Holding (aviation)
• Holding (surname)
• Holding company, a company that owns stock in other companies
• Holding (American football), a common penalty in American football

In aviation, holding (or flying a hold) is a maneuver designed to delay an aircraft already in flight while keeping it within a specified airspace.

In gridiron football, holding is the illegal restraining of another player who is not in possession of the ball. Holding is banned in most football leagues because it does not allow fair play of the game and increases the risk for injury.

While in the field of play, offensive holding results in a 10-yard penalty, or half the distance to the goal line when there are fewer than 20 yards between the line of scrimmage and the offense's end zone. If the act of holding is committed from within the offense's own end zone, the result is a safety. It is one of the most common penalties in American football.

In the NFL, when holding is committed by the defense, the penalty is 5 yards and an automatic first down.

Holding is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:

• Billy Holding, rugby league footballer of the 1920s, '30s, and '40s for Cumberland, Warrington, Rochdale Hornets
• Eddie Holding (1930–2014), English footballer and manager
• Michael Holding, cricketer
• Robert Holding, the majority owner of Sinclair Oil