remain
Americanverb (used without object)
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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,
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miscellaneous, fragmentary, or other writings still unpublished at the time of an author's death.
-
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
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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
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has remainedperfect 3rd person singular
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have remainedperfect
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have been remainingperfect progressive
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are remainingprogressive
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is remainingprogressive 3rd person singular
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remainingparticiple
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has been remainingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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am remainingprogressive 1st person singular
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remainssingular 3rd person
Past
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had remainedperfect
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were remainingprogressive plural
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was remainingprogressive singular
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had been remainingperfect progressive
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remainedsimple
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remainedparticiple
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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Workshop 4, Part 2
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Workshop 3, Part 2
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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.
The only humans who remain are a team of about a dozen park rangers and Department of Interior scientists who are working to review the fire damage and understand the scale of the loss.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 10, 2026
In the meantime, he explained, prices will likely remain elevated, but not in an unprecedented way.
From Salon • Jun. 10, 2026
The Disability Insurance trust fund’s reserves are projected to remain positive throughout the 75-year projection period.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 10, 2026
Because some of these replacement chemicals remain in the atmosphere for decades, TFA pollution is expected to continue increasing.
From Science Daily • Jun. 9, 2026
The house was at one point painted a bright green, but now only a few flaky patches of paint remain.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
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.
