To hold one's own

To hold one's own
Own Own, a. [OE. owen, awen, auen, aughen, AS. [=a]gen, p. p. of [=a]gan to possess; akin to OS. [=e]gan, G. & D. eigen, Icel. eiginn, Sw. & Dan. egen. [root]110. See {Owe}.] Belonging to; belonging exclusively or especially to; peculiar; -- most frequently following a possessive pronoun, as my, our, thy, your, his, her, its, their, in order to emphasize or intensify the idea of property, peculiar interest, or exclusive ownership; as, my own father; my own composition; my own idea; at my own price. ``No man was his own [i. e., no man was master of himself, or in possession of his senses].'' --Shak. [1913 Webster]

{To hold one's own}, to keep or maintain one's possessions; to yield nothing; esp., to suffer no loss or disadvantage in a contest. --Shak. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • hold one's own — {v. phr.} To keep your position; avoid losing ground; keep your advantage, wealth, or condition without loss. * /Mr. Smith could not build up his business, but he held his own./ * /The team held its own after the first quarter./ * /Mary had a… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • hold one's own — {v. phr.} To keep your position; avoid losing ground; keep your advantage, wealth, or condition without loss. * /Mr. Smith could not build up his business, but he held his own./ * /The team held its own after the first quarter./ * /Mary had a… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • hold one's own — ► hold one s own retain a position of strength in a challenging situation. Main Entry: ↑own …   English terms dictionary

  • hold one's own — verb 1. be sufficiently competent in a certain situation He can hold his own in graduate school • Verb Frames: Somebody s 2. maintain one s position and be in control of a situation • Hypernyms: ↑control, ↑command …   Useful english dictionary

  • hold one's own — idi hold one s own a) to maintain one s position or condition b) to be equal to the opposition …   From formal English to slang

  • To hold one's own — Hold Hold, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Held}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Holding}. {Holden}, p. p., is obs. in elegant writing, though still used in legal language.] [OE. haldan, D. houden, OHG. hoten, Icel. halda, Dan. holde, Sw. h[*a]lla, Goth. haldan to feed,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • hold one's own — See own Britain has begun to hold its own in world markets Syn: stand firm, stand one s ground, keep one s end up, keep one s head above water, compete, survive, cope, get on/along …   Thesaurus of popular words

  • hold one's own — verb To demonstrate oneself to be capable; to provide a respectable performance or worthy competition; to stick up for oneself. At any rate, he was like John Bull in one respect: he was sturdy and square, and fit to hold his own with any man. Syn …   Wiktionary

  • hold one's own — (in an argument/dispute) to defend one s position Although her boss is very aggressive she is always able to hold her own in any dispute with him …   Idioms and examples

  • hold one's own. — See own. → hold …   Useful english dictionary

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