contain
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to hold or include within its volume or area.
This glass contains water.
This paddock contains our best horses.
-
to be capable of holding; have capacity for.
The room will contain 75 persons safely.
-
to have as contents content or constituent parts; comprise; include.
-
to keep under proper control; restrain.
He could not contain his amusement.
-
to prevent or limit the expansion, influence, success, or advance of (a hostile nation, competitor, opposing force, natural disaster, etc.).
to contain an epidemic.
-
to succeed in preventing the spread of.
efforts to contain water pollution.
-
Mathematics. (of a number) to be a multiple of; be divisible by, without a remainder.
Ten contains five.
-
to be equal to.
A quart contains two pints.
verb
-
to hold or be capable of holding or including within a fixed limit or area
this contains five pints
-
to keep (one's feelings, behaviour, etc) within bounds; restrain
-
to consist of; comprise
the book contains three different sections
-
military to prevent (enemy forces) from operating beyond a certain level or area
-
maths
-
to be a multiple of, leaving no remainder
6 contains 2 and 3
-
to have as a subset
-
Related Words
Contain, accommodate, hold, express the idea that something is so designed that something else can exist or be placed within it. Contain refers to what is actually within a given container. Hold emphasizes the idea of keeping within bounds; it refers also to the greatest amount or number that can be kept within a given container. Accommodate means to contain comfortably or conveniently, or to meet the needs of a certain number. A passenger plane that accommodates 50 passengers may be able to hold 60, but at a given time may contain only 30.
Other Word Forms
- containable adjective
- precontain verb (used with object)
- uncontainable adjective
Etymology
Origin of contain
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English conte(y)nen, from Anglo-French contener, Old French contenir, from Latin continēre, equivalent to con- con- + -tinēre, verb suffix of tenēre “to hold” ( tenet )
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.
A third region contained the Pip gene, which produces an antibacterial molecule, and was linked to bacteria from the Muribaculaceae family.
From Science Daily
The GDP report itself contains some troubling disconnects: Americans’ disposable personal income remained flat after inflation, despite their robust spending.
Spoiler warning: This contains some details about what has happened in the show so far, but does not reveal anything about the final four episodes.
From BBC
They said police were able to contain the protests, clear the entrances and prevent violence.
From Los Angeles Times
“The document has undergone substantial modifications and contains significant deletions of information that, in some instances, alter the conclusions originally presented.”
From Los Angeles Times
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.
