hielt
Translation
held, stopped, considered, kept
Examples
Er hielt das Buch fest.
He held the book tightly.
Der Bus hielt plötzlich an.
The bus stopped suddenly.
Ich hielt ihn für einen Freund.
I considered him a friend.
Er hielt sein Versprechen.
He kept his promise.
Grammar Patterns
((sth.)) halten to hold sth. He held the glass in his hand.
((sth.)) ((für sth.)) halten to consider sth. as sth. I considered it a joke.
an+dat halten to stop at somewhere The train stopped at the station.
((sth.)) halten (promise) to keep sth. (a promise) He always kept his word.
Similar Words
Synonyms: fasste (grasped), stoppte (stopped); Antonyms: ließ los (let go), fuhr weiter (drove on)
Etymology
Simple past (Präteritum) of 'halten'. From Old High German 'haltan', cognate with English 'hold'.
Memory Tips
It's the past tense of 'halten' and sounds like the English 'held'. Think 'he held it' -> 'er hielt es'.