holding pattern

noun

1

: the usually oval course flown (as over an airport) by aircraft awaiting clearance especially to land

2

: a state of waiting or suspended activity or progress

Synonyms

• abeyance
• cold storage
• deep freeze
• doldrums
• dormancy
• latency
• moratorium
• quiescence
• suspended animation
• suspense
• suspension

Examples of holding pattern in a Sentence

Our plane was in a holding pattern for almost an hour because of the fog.

repair work on the bridge was in a holding pattern for the duration of the winter

Recent Examples on the Web

Now Arenado and the Cardinals are at the mercy of the industry, trapped in a holding pattern as baseball’s countdown to spring training ticks louder. —Katie Woo, The Athletic, 7 Jan. 2025

Nowadays, Dodge offers just two cars for sale: the Hornet and Durango SUVs, though that is somewhat of a holding pattern before the brand goes electric with cars like the new Charger. —Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 6 Jan. 2025

When everything is familiar, our brains go into a kind of holding pattern. —Janice Kaplan, TIME, 3 Jan. 2025

The bill had been held in a procedural holding pattern until bill sponsor Rep. Ryan Williams, R-Cookeville, motioned to add it to the next available calendar. —Melissa Brown, The Tennessean, 22 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1952, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

holding pattern

noun

1

: the course flown (as over an airport) by an aircraft waiting for permission to land

2

: a state of waiting or suspended activity

the project is in a holding pattern