Meaning & use
hold up
A delay that prevents something from proceeding as planned.
See it in a sentence
There was a hold-up on the highway because of an overturned truck.
The permit hold-up pushed the construction start date back by a month.
A note on using this word
As one word, 'holdup' can also mean an armed robbery, a very different sense from a simple delay.
Words with a similar meaning
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Another way to use it
2. noun
An armed robbery, especially one carried out quickly at a bank or store.
Police arrived minutes after the hold-up at the corner bank.
Make it your own
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