Meanings
plural holdovers
- countableSomething left behind, saved or remaining from an earlier time.
That policy is a holdover from days of punch card data entry.
1 more example
Castle Rock Middle School was a frowning pile of red brick standing between the Post Office and the Library, a holdover from the time when the town elders didn't feel entirely comfortable with a school unless it looked like a reformatory.
1991, Stephen King, Needful Things - countableuncountableengineeringThe distance (at target) by which a rifle scope is aimed higher than the intended point of impact in order to compensate for bullet drop over the distance to the target.
This rangefinder not only measures the distance to the target, but also provides a digital readout of the inches of holdover at that distance.
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Deverbal from hold over.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Hungarian maradvány, csökevény
- maradványTranslations
- csökevényTranslations
Polish pozostałość
- pozostałośćTranslations
Spanish vestigio, remanente
- vestigioTranslations
- remanenteTranslations
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
holdover. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/holdover
“holdover.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/holdover. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “holdover,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/holdover.
Source: holdover on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.