hold down — suppress forcibly
phrasal verbC2IELTS 8+neutralrare
to prevent something such as opposition, emotion, or unrest from developing or being expressed, often by using force, authority, or pressure.
Say it like a native
Textbook The regime suppressed all forms of dissent by force.
Native The regime held down any opposition.
'Hold down' naturally means keep something forcibly suppressed. The formal version is more journalistic.
Pattern: hold down + noun (abstract: dissent, protest, anger, etc.)
In use
- The government tried to hold down dissent by restricting access to social media.politics
- Some argue that attempts to hold down public anger can ultimately lead to greater unrest in the long term.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ They held down on the rebellion.
✓ They held down the rebellion.
'Hold down + thing' directly — no 'on'.
Common collocations
hold down— opposition, unrest, dissent, costs
Don't confuse it
This sense is figurative and abstract, unlike the B2 sense of 'hold down' meaning 'keep a job.' Here, it refers to suppressing something (like dissent or emotion), not maintaining employment.
Related
- hold down (keep a job) — 'hold down' also has the more basic meaning 'keep a job'; this is the advanced sense.