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Synonyms

hole up

British  

verb

  1. (of an animal) to hibernate, esp in a cave

  2. informal to hide or remain secluded

"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
hole up Idioms  

  1. Take refuge or shelter, hide, as in I spent most of the cruise holed up in my cabin. This usage alludes to animals hibernating in winter or hiding from attack in caves or holes. [Late 1800s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But after holing up Sunday in his apartment 90 steps from the beach in the historic Zona Romantica, Eure was ready to venture outside.

From Los Angeles Times

I clear my schedule and hole up in the library, only to fritter away hours doing everything but writing.

From The Wall Street Journal

Around one million Goma residents were holed up in their homes on January 26, 2025, when the Congolese army and its allies were forced to pull out of the provincial capital.

From Barron's

They were holed up in their houses already, preparing to ride out the storm.

From Literature

“I mean, could it have been holed up somewhere since the fire?”

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.