hold delivery

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "hold delivery" is not standard in written English and may cause confusion.
It could be used in contexts related to logistics or shipping, but it is not a commonly recognized term. Example: "Please hold delivery until we confirm the final address."

News & Media

Science

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

If NetGrocer could somehow hold delivery costs down, it would have a decided cost advantage.

Forbes

There are still more storefront sellers in California — 915 have been licensed so far — than firms that hold delivery licenses.

Los Angeles Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

At a building marketed by Halstead Property, +art, at 540 West 28th Street, a room off the lobby was to be used for cold storage, to hold deliveries from companies like Fresh Direct until residents returned home.

The New York Times

A second approach, affective computing, gathers information about the state of the user through a range of sensors, enabling the computer to adapt by, say, holding delivery of all but high-priority e-mail when it detects stress.

The New York Times - Tech

The matching rate of pregnancy information for the mother from the PIMS dataset to the mothers' nationally held delivery event information is 98.28%, representing 34,940 individual women in the cohort, with 52,998 delivery/birth events.

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth

Torre said that Mendoza must occasionally be reminded to hold his delivery together.

The New York Times - Sports

The Defense Ministry has put on hold the delivery of the remaining nine helicopters from the company.

The New York Times

In 1833, Marshall held that a pardon was a deed "to the validity of which delivery is essential and delivery is not complete without acceptance". The judge in the Depuy case recognized that these were "directly antagonistic rulings" by the same justice, but since one came long after the other, he said had no choice but to hold that delivery is essential.

The Washington Post

Unethical freelancers can delay or hold up delivery of products or services until extra, added-on fees are paid – fees that were not in the original agreement.

Forbes

"While components typically cost less than 25 cents each, their true value is huge when they are not available and hold up delivery of multimillion-dollar systems," says Eric Pratt, director of Isuppli, an electronic components forecaster.

Forbes

Just take delivery and hold onto the shares until a year and a day from after you bought the future.

Forbes

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "hold delivery" when you want to temporarily stop or delay a shipment or service. For more formal contexts, consider using "postpone delivery" or "defer delivery".

Common error

Avoid using "hold delivery" if you intend to cancel the delivery entirely. "Cancel delivery" is more appropriate in those situations.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "hold delivery" functions primarily as a verb phrase followed by a noun, indicating an action performed on the delivery. As shown in Ludwig, it suggests a temporary suspension or delay of the delivery process.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

33%

Science

33%

Academia

33%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Reference

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "hold delivery" is an acceptable but not highly common way to express the temporary suspension or delay of a delivery. Ludwig indicates that while grammatically sound, it may benefit from being replaced with more explicit alternatives like "delay delivery" or "postpone delivery" in formal contexts. The phrase appears across various domains, including news, science, and academia. Using this phrase effectively depends on clearly communicating the intent of a temporary pause rather than a permanent cancellation. To be more precise, consider the nuances of the context and choose a synonym that best reflects the desired meaning.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

put delivery on hold

Adds a prepositional phrase for emphasis, indicating a temporary pause.

delay delivery

Replaces "hold" with a more direct synonym, focusing on postponing the delivery.

postpone delivery

Similar to "delay delivery", this emphasizes a formal rescheduling of the delivery.

defer delivery

A more formal term for postponing delivery to a later date.

suspend delivery

Implies a temporary cessation of delivery services.

withhold delivery

Suggests a deliberate act of preventing delivery, often due to a specific reason.

stop delivery

Indicates a complete cessation of delivery, possibly permanent.

retain delivery

Focuses on keeping possession of the item before it is delivered.

maintain delivery

Highlights continuous delivery service.

arrange delivery

Focuses on the act of organizing and planning the delivery.

FAQs

What does "hold delivery" mean?

"Hold delivery" means to temporarily stop or delay the delivery of something. It's often used when you need to postpone receiving a shipment or service.

What can I say instead of "hold delivery"?

You can use alternatives like "delay delivery", "postpone delivery", or "suspend delivery" depending on the context.

Is it correct to say "hold up delivery"?

Yes, "hold up delivery" is a valid phrase. It means to cause a delay in the delivery process. However, "delay delivery" might be clearer in many contexts.

What's the difference between "hold delivery" and "cancel delivery"?

"Hold delivery" implies a temporary stop, with the intention of resuming later. "Cancel delivery" means to terminate the delivery process entirely.