Languages › French Tenir le coup Share Flipboard Email Print Thoughtco French Vocabulary Pronunciation & Conversation Grammar Resources For Teachers By ThoughtCo Team Updated on February 07, 2019 Expression: Tenir le coup Pronunciation: [ teu neer leu koo] Meaning: to cope, hold up, handle, make it through; to stay the course Literal translation: to hold the blow Register: normal Notes The French expression tenir le coup can be used for both people and things. For people, tenir le coup means to cope with a difficult situation. For things, it indicates that something is holding up, such as evidence or the economy. Examples Ça a été un choc atroce, mais il tient le coup. It was a terrible shock, but he's coping. Je ne pense pas que l'économie puisse tenir le coup. I don't think the economy can hold up. More Expressions with tenir Expressions with coup Most common French phrases Cite this Article Format mla apa chicago Your Citation Team, ThoughtCo. "Tenir le coup." ThoughtCo, Dec. 6, 2021, thoughtco.com/tenir-le-coup-1371398. Team, ThoughtCo. (2021, December 6). Tenir le coup. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/tenir-le-coup-1371398 Team, ThoughtCo. "Tenir le coup." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/tenir-le-coup-1371398 (accessed June 1, 2023). copy citation