hodl

H4O1D2L1
/hɒdl̩//hɒdəl/

verb

To hoard a kind of cryptocurrency, especially bitcoin.

Scrabble 8

Meanings

hodl1

verbhodl (third-person singular simple present hodls, present participle hodling, simple past and past participle hodled)

present singular third person hodls · participle present hodling · participle past hodled · past hodled · alternative HODL

  1. neologismTo hoard a kind of cryptocurrency, especially bitcoin.

    Bitcoin price continues decline. If you're hodling, bite your government passbook.

    2016 July 22, Venzen Khaosan, “Bitcoin Price Decline 100% Confirmed”, in Cryptocoins News
    4 more examples

    I believe that the individuals who have the fortitude and insight to be hodling onto their coins deserve to be rewarded for their risk. It is also my hope that I am hodling more coins if/when the price skyrockets.

    2017 April 22, “Bitcoin Is Not Immune to All Fiat Problems”, in The Merkle

    Cryptocurrency veterans love to “hodl,” aka store their virtual loot as a long-term investment. But digital currency wasn't only made for hodling.

    2017 November 10, Leigh Cuen, “Cyber Monday Guide: How To Buy Christmas Presents With Bitcoin”, in International Business Times

    Buy and hold strategies for Bitcoin ("hodling" as it called) is likely to have far lower returns, even if the future is positive, and traders will lose the volatility that has made Bitcoin trading so profitable.

    2017 November 26, Lynn Sebastian Purcell, “Why Futures Spell The End Of Bitcoin Mania”, in Toronto Star

    But even those with the stomach for hodling must avoid an even bigger issue — hacking.

    2021 April 25, Erin Griffith, “We’re All Crypto People Now”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

HODL2

verbHODL (third-person singular simple present HODLs, present participle HODLing, simple past and past participle HODLed)

present singular third person HODLs · participle present HODLing · participle past HODLed · past HODLed

  1. Alternative letter-case form of hodl.

    Many people who have gotten wealthy through little-known cryptocurrencies said they didn’t plan to cash out. They said they preferred to HODL, or hold on for dear life, and keep speculating.

    2022 February 7, David Yaffe-Bellany, “They Made Millions on Luna, Solana and Polygon: Crypto’s Boom Beyond Bitcoin”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 19 Feb 2022
    1 more example

    Bitcoin, in particular, has always bounced back from previous dips, and investors who HODLed (held on for dear life to their coins, despite falling prices) have ended up with huge capital gains.

    2022 May 17, Paul Krugman, “Crashing Crypto: Is This Time Different?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 21 May 2022

Origin

Originally a mistyping of hold, appearing in a forum post on December 18, 2013. The backronym "Hold On for Dear Life" is sometimes used.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with hodl

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Sounds the same

Anagrams

Cite this entry
APA

hodl. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hodl

MLA

“hodl.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hodl. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hodl,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hodl.

Source: hodl on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.