English Explanatory Dictionary

contain

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To hold inside.
  2. To include as a part.
  3. To put constraints upon; to restrain; to confine; to keep within bounds.
  4. To have as an element or subset.
  5. To restrain desire; to live in continence or chastity.

Pronunciation

kən-tānʹ /kənˈteɪn/ en-ca-contain.ogg

Word forms

contain contains containing contained

Etymology

From Middle English, borrowed from Old French contenir, from Latin continēre (“to hold or keep together, comprise, contain”), combined form of con- (“together”) + teneō (“to hold”).

Synonyms

curb repress restrain restrict stifle enclose inhold comprise embody incorporate control

Antonyms

exclude omit release vent

Related words

container containable containment content continence

Derived words

containee contain multitudes contain oneself melanopsin-containing retinal ganglion cell self-contain
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