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hold has 75 distinct synonyms spread across 32 of its 45 senses. Each sense below keeps its own list, because a synonym belongs to a meaning and not to a word: swapping one sense's substitute into another sense's sentence is how a thesaurus makes writing worse. Its one recorded opposite is let go of.
Counts are distinct word forms across every sense. A synonym that appears under three senses is counted once here and shown three times below, under each sense it belongs to.
remain in a certain state, position, or condition
“The weather held”
assert or affirm
“Rousseau's philosophy holds that people are inherently good”
have as a major characteristic
“The novel holds many surprises”
hold the attention of
“The soprano held the audience”
remain committed to
“I hold to these ideas”
stop dealing with
“hold all calls to the President's office while he is in a meeting”
take and maintain control over, often by violent means
“The dissatisfied students held the President's office for almost a week”
cover as for protection against noise or smell
“She held her ears when the jackhammer started to operate”
drink alcohol without showing ill effects
“He can hold his liquor”
aim, point, or direct
“Hold the fire extinguisher directly on the flames”
keep from exhaling or expelling
“hold your breath”
understanding of the nature or meaning or quality or magnitude of something
“he has a good grasp of accounting practices”
power by which something or someone is affected or dominated
“he has a hold over them”
time during which some action is awaited
“instant replay caused too long a delay”
a state of being confined (usually for a short time)
“his detention was politically motivated”
the appendage to an object that is designed to be held in order to use or move it
“he grabbed the hammer by the handle”
the space in a ship or aircraft for storing cargo
Synonyms, antonyms and the broader and narrower relations for hold come from Princeton University’s WordNet. Full sources and licences.