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holdover

/ˌhoʊldˈoʊvər/
IPA guide

Other forms: holdovers

A holdover is something that has stuck around for a long time. A law that forbids women from wearing patent leather shoes in public is a holdover from a very different era.

The noun holdover comes up often in politics. A member of a former president's cabinet who keeps her job even after a new president is elected may be referred to as a holdover from the previous administration. A gym teacher's habit of barking out instructions to his elementary school students might be a holdover from his army days.

Definitions of holdover
  1. noun
    something that has survived from the past
    “a holdover from the sixties”
    synonyms: hangover
    see moresee less
    type of:
    survival
    something that survives
  2. noun
    an official who remains in office after his term
    synonyms: hangover
    see moresee less
    type of:
    functionary, official
    a worker who holds or is invested with an office
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘holdover'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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