remain
Americanverb (used without object)
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remains,
present (3rd person singular)
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remained,
past participle, past
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remaining
present participle
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to continue in the same state; continue to be as specified.
to remain at peace.
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to stay behind or in the same place.
to remain at home;
I'll remain here when you go to the airport.
- Antonyms:
- depart
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to be left after the removal, loss, destruction, etc., of all else.
The front wall is all that remains of the fort.
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to be left to be done, told, shown, etc..
Only the dishwashing remains.
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to be reserved or in store.
noun
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Usually remains. something that remains or is left.
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remains,
-
miscellaneous, fragmentary, or other writings still unpublished at the time of an author's death.
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traces of some quality, condition, etc.
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a dead body; corpse.
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parts or substances remaining from animal or plant life that occur in the earth's crust or strata.
fossil remains;
organic remains.
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verb
-
to stay behind or in the same place
to remain at home
only Tom remained
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(copula) to continue to be
to remain cheerful
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to be left, as after use, consumption, the passage of time, etc
a little wine still remained in the bottle
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to be left to be done, said, etc
it remains to be pointed out
Synonym Usage
See continue.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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remainsimple
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remainssimple
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have remainedperfect
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has remainedperfect
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am remainingprogressive
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are remainingprogressive
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is remainingprogressive
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have been remainingperfect progressive
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has been remainingperfect progressive
Past
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remainedsimple
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had remainedperfect
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was remainingprogressive
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were remainingprogressive
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had been remainingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of remain
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English remainen, from Anglo-French remain-, stressed stem of Middle French remanoir, from Latin remanēre, equivalent to re- re- + manēre “to stay”; see manor
Explanation
To remain is to stay in the same place or situation. You can remain at home instead of going out to the movies with your friends, but that doesn't mean you won't remain friends. If things remain the same, they don't change, and if your family remains in the same town, they don't move. When something is left behind, it also remains: "All that remains of my party is a bunch of deflated balloons." In the fifteenth century, remain was a noun too, meaning "people or things left over or surviving." Today we use remainder instead.
Vocabulary lists containing remain
"The Earth Under Sky Bear's Feet"
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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.
See Examples For:
While there aren’t as many internship opportunities, those that remain often come with higher-level responsibilities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
The Metropolitan Police said detectives were working at pace to establish the full circumstances surrounding the death, and that urgent inquiries remain ongoing.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who earned a reputation for acid putdowns of journalists, is to step down, President Donald Trump announced Wednesday adding she would remain a senior advisor.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
Certification costs could separate Chinese companies that remain anonymous suppliers from those able to build recognizable brands.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
“I remain agnostic on that point. If anyone can, Madame Ionesco can, that much I will say. But that doesn’t mean anyone can, does it?”
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
Yet, compared with the US and UK, adoption in many workplaces remains sluggish and cautious.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
As the national market remains stagnant, a shift is underway in many local real-estate markets, signifying a major turning point.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
The event remains shrouded in mystery, as no images have been released.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
But for a prominent middle power on the global stage, Pakistan remains something of an anomaly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
As punishment for killing the bird, the old sailor of the poem’s title was forced to wear its gruesome remains as a necktie.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
Even so, gasoline prices remained 25% higher than a year earlier.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
She remained a fixture at games, sitting courtside during the season, with Walter occasionally joining her or sitting courtside near the baseline.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
The curfew remained in place for the Test team in the home summer, although there was confusion surrounding the terms and how it was communicated.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
In all years, where families have gotten the money has remained fairly consistent: scholarships and grants, parent and student income, savings, borrowing and gifts.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
Only one of the three masts remained unbroken, and none still held its sails.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
Ariel Atkins cut the deficit to 90-87 after banking in a three-pointer with 22 seconds remaining, but the Mercury made their free throws and pressured the Sparks’ offense.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
With so many staffers leaving and not being replaced, the remaining providers have often been stretched remarkably thin.
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026
For now, all eyes are on Wednesday’s inflation report for July and the remaining batch of quarterly corporate earnings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The researchers also created a genome-wide hybridization panel that enriches the remaining sample for methylated DNA from solid organs, including organs that may be affected by disease.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 11, 2026
Immediately, his biggest remaining investor, who had $150 million in the fund, questioned his judgment and threatened to pull his money out.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
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.
