Phrasal Verbs

Infinitive: hold down
PRESENT TENSE
-ING FORM
PAST TENSE
PAST PARTICIPLE
hold down & holds
down
holding down
held down
held down
1. hold . . . down p.v. When you hold down a job, you continue working at that job.
My sister has never been able to hold down a job for more than two months.
Maria’s a single mother who holds three jobs down in order to keep up with her
bills.
2. hold . . . down p.v. When you maintain something at a low level, such as a price,
temperature, pressure level, noise level, etc., you hold it down. Hold down is similar to
keep down.
Automakers won’t be able to hold their prices down if the cost of steel rises.
I wish you kids would hold it down in there. Your mother’s trying to sleep.
3. hold . . . down p.v. When you hold down food, you don’t vomit even though you are ill.
My son is very sick. He can’t hold anything down except for fruit juice.
When I had food poisoning, I couldn’t hold anything down for four days.
4. hold . . . down p.v. When you use force to keep a person on the ground, you hold that
person down.
The police held the captured criminal down while they handcuffed her.
The wrestler held his opponent down.
5. hold . . . down p.v. When you unfairly prevent people from advancing in society or in a
career by limiting their freedom or denying them their rights, you hold them down. When
a situation or fact prevents people from advancing in society or in a career, it holds them
down.
The women claimed the company held them down and didn’t pay them as much
as male workers.
Ali was a brilliant scientist, but he was held down in his career by religious
discrimination.