hielten

Hielten is the simple past (Präteritum) form of the German verb halten, meaning to hold, keep, or maintain. It is used mainly in narrative or written text to describe past actions or states, and it also appears in the formal address with Sie in the past tense (Sie hielten).

Conjugation in the Präteritum (examples for the main persons):

- ich hielt

- du hieltest

- er/sie/es hielt

- wir hielten

- ihr hieltet

- sie hielten

- Sie hielten

The past participle is gehalten and is used with the auxiliary haben to form the present perfect: ich habe gehalten, du hast gehalten, er hat gehalten, wir haben gehalten, ihr habt gehalten, sie haben gehalten. The present participle haltend can be used adjectivally or in certain constructions.

Usage notes:

Hielten is used to describe past holding or maintaining in a broad sense, including physical holding, keeping something in a state, or persisting in a decision or position. It appears in various idiomatic phrases, such as den Atem anhalten in the past tense (den Atem hielten) and an etwas festhalten to cling to or adhere to something (ich hielt an meiner Meinung fest).

Etymology:

Halten originates from Old High German and is part of the West Germanic verb family that includes Dutch houden and the English hold. The form hielten reflects the Germanic pattern for Präteritum across plural subjects and formal address.

See also:

Halten (verb) provides broader information on the base verb, its other tenses, meanings, and related compounds.