holding

See also: Holding

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: hōldʹ-ĭng, IPA^(key): /ˈhoːldɪŋ/
  • IPA^(key): [ˈhəʉɫdɪŋ]
  • IPA^(key): [ˈhəʊɫdɪŋ]
  • IPA^(key): [ˈhoʊɫdɪŋ]

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊldɪŋ
• Hyphenation: hold‧ing

Noun

holding (plural holdings)

1. Something that one owns, especially stocks and bonds.
   • 2009, The Economist, Law and order in Italy: Trouble with figures

     Italy's right-wing prime minister was about to cure his biggest headache by selling the state's holding in a troubled airline, Alitalia.

2. A determination of law made by a court.
3. A tenure; a farm or other estate held of another.
   • 1596, William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John, V. i. 3:

     Take again / From this my hand, as holding of the Pope / Your sovereign greatness and authority.

4. (obsolete) That which holds, binds, or influences.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Burke to this entry?)

5. (obsolete) Logic; consistency.
   • 1598, William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, IV. ii. 27:

     This has no holding, / To swear by him whom I protest to love / That I will work against him.

6. (obsolete) The burden or chorus of a song.
   • 1598, William Shakespeare, The Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra, II. vii. 109:

     Make battery to our ears with the loud music; / The while I'll place you; then the boy shall sing. / The holding every man shall beat as loud / As his strong sides can volley.

7. (in texts about Russia, nonstandard) A holding company, or other kind of company (by back-translation from Russian холдинг (xolding)).

Coordinate terms

• (determination): finding

Translations

something that one owns, especially stocks and bonds

• Armenian: հոլդինգ (hy) (holding)
• Bulgarian: владене n (vladene), притежаване (bg) n (pritežavane)
• Finnish: omistus (fi), omistusosuus (fi)
• French: possession (fr)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: possesso (it)
• Romanian: posesie (ro) f
• Russian: владе́ние (ru) n (vladénije), хо́лдинг (ru) m (xólding) (company)

determination of law by court

• Russian: судебное (sudebnoje) реше́ние (rešénije) (sudébnoje rešénije)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Verb

holding

1. present participle of hold

   They were caught holding hands in the dark.

   • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 5, in The Celebrity:

     Then came a maid with hand-bag and shawls, and after her a tall young lady. She stood for a moment holding her skirt above the grimy steps, […] , and the light of the reflector fell full upon her.

Derived terms

Terms derived from holding (verb)

• holding company
• holding the ball
• holding the cards

• holding the man
• inholding

Anagrams

• hodling

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French

Noun

holding m or f (plural holdings)

1. holding company

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Spanish

Noun

holding m (plural holdings)

1. holding company