5
slow down(verb, expression, stop, trouble, control)
5
slow up(verb, expression, check, delay, hinder)
5
squelch(verb, stop, hold, control, check)
5
stay(verb, stop, control, close, end)
4
abstain(verb, stop, control, keep, restrain)
4
back down(verb, expression, withdraw, back, yield)
4
begrudge(verb, decline, reject, oppose, mind)
4
bog down(expression, check, reduce, restrain, delay)
4
bottle(verb, restrain, crush, block, curb)
4
choke(verb, stop, hold, control, check)
4
cover up(verb, expression, stop, check, restrain)
4
deter(verb, stop, control, close, end)
4
govern(verb, control, check, restrain, moderate)
4
grudge(verb, give, mind, resent)
4
halt(verb, stop, control, close, end)
4
hang back(verb, expression, phrasal verb, pause, falter)
4
hold at bay(expression, idiom, stop, control, close)
4
keep from(expression, stop, cover, restrain, block)
4
keep in(verb, expression, stop, check, reduce)
4
keep out(verb, expression, phrasal verb, check, keep)
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APASmart Define. (2015). hold back thesaurus. Retrieved September 24, 2026, from https://smartdefine.org/hold_back/thesaurus/synonyms
ChicagoSmart Define. 2015. "hold back thesaurus" https://smartdefine.org/hold_back/thesaurus/synonyms (accessed September 24, 2026).
HarvardSmart Define 2015, hold back thesaurus, Smart Define, viewed 24 September, 2026, <https://smartdefine.org/hold_back/thesaurus/synonyms>.
MLASmart Define. "hold back thesaurus" 10 April 2015. Web. 24 September 2026. <https://smartdefine.org/hold_back/thesaurus/synonyms>