WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

hold out
    v 1: thrust or extend out; "He held out his hand"; "point a
         finger"; "extend a hand"; "the bee exserted its sting"
         [syn: exsert, stretch out, put out, extend, hold
         out, stretch forth]
    2: stand up or offer resistance to somebody or something [syn:
       resist, hold out, withstand, stand firm] [ant: give
       up, surrender]
    3: last and be usable; "This dress wore well for almost ten
       years" [syn: wear, hold out, endure]
    4: wait uncompromisingly for something desirable; "He held out
       for the dessert and did not touch the cheeses"
    5: continue to live through hardship or adversity; "We went
       without water and food for 3 days"; "These superstitions
       survive in the backwaters of America"; "The race car driver
       lived through several very serious accidents"; "how long can
       a person last without food and water?" [syn: survive,
       last, live, live on, go, endure, hold up, hold
       out]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

150 Moby Thesaurus words for "hold out":
   abide, balk, be proof against, be unflappable, be unmoved,
   be unwilling, bear up, bear up against, beg off, bide, boycott,
   carry on, come up fighting, continue, continue to be, decline,
   decline to accept, defeat time, defy, defy time, die hard, dig in,
   disagree, disallow, disclaim, dissent, dwell, endure, exist,
   extend, get home free, give, go on, go on strike, go out, hang in,
   hang in there, hang on, hang tough, hold, hold fast, hold forth,
   hold on, hold out against, hold up, keep, keep on, keep up, last,
   last long, last out, live, live on, live through, live through it,
   live with it, lock out, maintain, negate, negative, never say die,
   not back down, not budge, not buy, not consent, not flag,
   not give up, not hear of, not submit, not think of, not weaken,
   offer, perdure, perennate, persevere, persist, picket, pose,
   prefer, present, prevail, proffer, put up, rebuff, refuse,
   refuse consent, reject, remain, remain firm, repel, repudiate,
   repulse, resist, resist entreaty, resist persuasion, revolt,
   ride it out, run, run on, say nay, say no, see it out,
   shut it down, sit down, slow down, stand, stand aloof, stand fast,
   stand firm, stand no nonsense, stand out, stand pat,
   stand the gaff, stand up, stay, stay it out, stay on, stay put,
   stay the distance, stay with it, stick, stick fast, stick it,
   stick it out, stick out, stick to it, stick with it, stickle,
   strike, submit, subsist, survive, sustain, sweat it out, take it,
   take no denial, take what comes, tarry, tender, tide over,
   tough it out, turn down, vote nay, vote negatively, walk out, wear,
   wear well, weather, weather the storm, withstand