hold together

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hold together (third-person singular simple present holds together, present participle holding together, simple past and past participle held together)

1. (transitive) To cause to stay together.
   • a. 1225, The Legend of St Katherine, l. 2268:

     Porphire & alle hise heolden ham togederes.

   • 1785, William Cowper, Task, ll. 687 f:

     ...the sacred band
     That holds mankind together...

2. (figuratively, idiomatic) Synonym of hold it together: to cope with adversity.
3. (intransitive) To stay together.
   • c. 1330, Amis and Amiloun, ll. 151 f:

     ...That thai schuld frely fond,
     To hold togider at eueri nede...

   • 1861, Temple Bar, number 3, page 509:

     There was hope that the ship would hold together.

   • 1960 March, “Talking of Trains: The Slough derailment”, in Trains Illustrated, page 132:

     The Inspecting Officer draws attention to the remarkable way in which the train held together after the final derailment; this was due in no small measure to the robustness of the buckeye couplings fitted to the coaches.

• hold it together

• “hold together”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “hold, v.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 1899.