withhold
To keep (a physical object that one has obtained) to oneself rather than giving it back to its owner.
Example
“The bank withheld her credit card.”
Other meanings
To keep (information, assent etc) to oneself rather than revealing it.
“withhold vital information”
To stay back, to refrain.
“I’ll withhold from asking about it.”
Synonyms
- keep back
Related words
- overwithhold
- underwithhold
Word history
From Middle English "withholden".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “withhold” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.