hang in

verb

hung in; hanging in; hangs in

intransitive verb

informal : to refuse to be discouraged or intimidated : to keep going, trying, or working in a difficult situation

… did not hang in long enough to win even a battle.

—Marvin E. Frankel

Hoping to hang in until some series he works on runs five years and makes him $50 million in syndication …

—Chris Chase

—often used in the phrase hang in there

If there was ever a mismatched couple it was this one, but the children begged them to hang in there.

—Joseph Wambaugh

If she hung in there long enough, he would change. It just took a lot of patience with a little reasoning.

—Gloria Naylor

Examples of hang in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Part one of season five ended with all of the personal and political conflicts hanging in the balance and will lead to a satisfying conclusion for fans, according to Grimes. —David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024

In recent years the McDonalds have added another face to the wall of family portraits hanging in their immaculate living room. —John Blake, CNN, 3 Nov. 2024

As the ball sailed through the air, his team’s fate hanging in the balance, Kaylin Moore seemed bound to be an observer to destiny. —Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2024

Temperatures will likely hang in the mid-70s but are predicted to creep up by Friday, with highs gradually increasing to the high 70s and low 80s by next weekend. —Lauren De Young, The Arizona Republic, 1 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1966, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

hang in

verb

informal

: to refuse to be discouraged or frightened

Hang in there, kid! Don't quit.