Halten

Halten is a German verb with several core meanings built around the idea of grasping, keeping, or stopping. It can denote a physical grasp: Ich halte den Ball. It can mean to retain or preserve something, as in Wir halten das Budget. It can indicate stopping or slowing movement, especially with vehicles: Der Wagen hält hier. In a broader sense, es can express maintaining a state, belief, or position: Sie hält an ihrer Meinung fest. The verb also appears in fixed expressions such as eine Rede halten (to give a speech). The reflexive phrase sich an etwas halten means to adhere to or follow something, such as rules or plans.

Conjugation and forms: Halten is irregular. Present tense forms: ich halte, du hältst, er hält, wir halten, ihr haltet, sie halten. Präteritum forms: ich hielt, du hieltest, er hielt, wir hielten, ihr gehalten, sie hielten. The past participle is gehalten and the auxiliary verb is haben, as in Ich habe das Buch gehalten. The imperative is halte (du) and haltet (ihr). Subjunctive forms occur in literary contexts, such as ich hielte and er hielte.

Prefixes and related forms: Halten forms a large family of compounds that modify its sense. Separable prefixes include anhalten (to stop a vehicle or to hold up), aufhalten (to delay or to keep open), durchhalten (to persevere), abhalten (to deter or to prevent), and festhalten (to hold on to; often treated as inseparable in meaning). Behalten is a related verb meaning to keep, and enthalten means to contain.

Usage notes: Halten governs both concrete and abstract objects. Physical uses include holding an object or holding one’s breath (den Atem halten). Figurative uses cover maintaining a position, keeping to rules (sich an die Regeln halten), or delivering a speech (eine Rede halten). The exact construction and case pattern can vary with the phrasal verb or prepositional phrase involved.