holden

From Middle English holden, from Old English healden, from Proto-West Germanic *haldan. By surface analysis, hold +‎ -en.

• Rhymes: -əʊldən

holden

1. (archaic) past participle of hold
   • 1603, Pliny the Elder, translated by Philemon Holland, The Historie of the World. Commonly called, The Naturall Historie of C. Plinius Secundus‎^[1], volume I, London: Adam Fslip, page 348:

     Asses milke is holden for to be thickest, and therfore they use it in stead of renning, to turn milke and gather curds thereof. It is thought also to be very good for to make womens skin faire and white

   • c. 1620s, Elizabeth Cary [misattributed to Henry Cary], The History Of the most unfortunate Prince King Edward II. […] , London: A.G. and F. P., published 1680, page 37:

     And in the worst construction they conceited Money, or a resignation of that part was holden by the King in France, would beget a Peace at their own will and pleasure.

   • 1766, William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England:

     The court of sweinmote is to be holden before the verderors, as judges, by the steward of the swein-mote, thrice in every year, the sweins or freeholders within the forest composing the jury.

   • 1859, Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities:

     She was pale and trembling. He came to her relief with a fixed despair of himself, which made the interview unlike any other that could have been holden.

• held on, hondel, onheld

From Old Danish haldæn, from Old Norse haldinn, = the past participle of halda (“to hold”). Compare German gehalten.

• IPA^(key): [ˈhʌlən]

holden (neuter holdent, plural and definite singular attributive holdne)

1. well-to-do, prosperous

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔldən

holden

1. inflection of hollen:
   1. plural past indicative
   2. (dated or formal) plural past subjunctive

holden

1. to hold

• Audio:

  (file)

holden

1. inflection of hold:
   1. strong genitive masculine/neuter singular
   2. weak/mixed genitive/dative all-gender singular
   3. strong/weak/mixed accusative masculine singular
   4. strong dative plural
   5. weak/mixed all-case plural

• halden, halde, halt

From Old English healdan, from Proto-West Germanic *haldan, from Proto-Germanic *haldaną (“to watch, look after”).

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɔːldən/
• IPA^(key): /ˈhaːldən/ (Northern)

holden (third-person singular simple present holdeth, present participle holdynge, first-/third-person singular past indicative held, past participle holden)

1. to hold
2. to consider

• biholden
• upholden

• English: hold
• Geordie English: ha'd
• Scots: hald, hauld, haud, had
• Yola: houle

• “hōlden, v.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.