to not do something, often because of fear or because you do not want to make a bad situation worse

He held back, terrified of going into the dark room. 他退缩了，不敢进入黑暗的房间。

to stop someone or something developing or doing as well as they should

She felt that having children would hold her back. 她觉得生孩子会阻碍她事业的发展。

If you hold someone or something back, you stop him, her, or it from coming or moving forward.

Sandbags will hold the flood waters back for a while. 沙袋能够将洪水挡住一段时间。

to keep information secret from someone deliberately

to stop yourself showing an emotion

He spoke slowly, to hold back his growing anger. 他说得很慢，努力不显露自己的愤怒。