holding pattern
a traffic pattern for aircraft at a specified location (holding point ) where they are ordered to remain until permitted to land or proceed.
a state or period in which no progress or change is made or planned.
Origin of holding pattern
1Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use holding pattern in a sentence
Hell, James left the entire league in a holding pattern whilst he pondered his future, Hamlet-like.
LeBron James Returns to Cleveland: How 'The Decision 2.0' Happened | Robert Silverman | July 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut the shadow of Clinton places the sitting veep in the unusual position of maintaining a holding pattern.
Democratic Presidential Contenders Stay in the Shadows | David Catanese | May 26, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTWhen it comes to treating cancer, we seem to be in a holding pattern.
Are We Wasting Billions Seeking a Cure for Cancer? | Margaret I. Cuomo | October 2, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTThe ATR-72 had been in a holding pattern, flying through sleet that caused a build-up of ice on the wings.
British Dictionary definitions for holding pattern
the oval or circular path of an aircraft flying around an airport awaiting permission to land
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Browse