containment

[ kuhn-teyn-muhnt ]

noun

1. the act or condition of containing.
2. an act or policy of restricting the territorial growth or ideological influence of another, especially a hostile nation.
3. an act or policy of limiting the expansion or spread of a natural disaster, contagious disease, or other dangerous thing: Local farmers notified authorities of sick and dying birds more quickly than the previous year, ensuring quick containment of infection on the farm.

   Containment of the wildfire reached nearly 40% before powerful winds carried embers over the perimeter, reducing containment.

   Local farmers notified authorities of sick and dying birds more quickly than the previous year, ensuring quick containment of infection on the farm.

4. (in a nuclear power plant) an enclosure completely surrounding a nuclear reactor, designed to prevent the release of radioactive material in the event of an accident.

containment

/ kənˈteɪnmənt /

noun

1. the act or condition of containing, esp of restraining the ideological or political power of a hostile country or the operations of a hostile military force
2. (from 1947 to the mid-1970s) a principle of US foreign policy that sought to prevent the expansion of Communist power
3. See magnetic bottle
   Also calledconfinement physics the process of preventing the plasma in a controlled thermonuclear reactor from reaching the walls of the reaction vessel, usually by confining it within a configuration of magnetic fields See magnetic bottle

containment

1. A policy aimed at controlling the spread of communism around the world, developed in the administration of President Harry S. Truman . The formation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ) in 1949 was an important step in the development of containment.

Word History and Origins

Origin of containment¹

First recorded in 1645–55; contain + -ment

Example Sentences

Widespread surveillance testing can catch these outbreaks “before they get completely out of hand,” he says, prompting effective scaled-up containment strategies.

From Vox

Testing for the coronavirus is essential for tracking its spread and knowing when additional containment measures should be put into place.

From Vox

Chevron installed a large, underground containment system — a channel with perforated drains at either end — and added devices called tilt meters to record any sudden shifts in formations beneath the surface to give warning above.

From ProPublica

Second and third waves of the virus have underscored the limits of low-tech containment strategies like face masks and social distancing and bolstered the need for a vaccine.

From Fortune

It’s very obvious that Japan on the one side of the Pacific and India on the other side…If you have close relations between those two countries, you’ve got a pretty powerful containment mechanism that kicks into place.

From Fortune

The UK, too, is now an active player in the containment mission.

From The Daily Beast

Frieden, who weeks ago claimed the “window was closing” on Ebola containment efforts, reaffirmed the need for an urgent response.

From The Daily Beast

If Obama spoke only of containment, John McCain might just have a stroke, and the Sunday shows would have to go off the air.

From The Daily Beast

Kennan was the legendary Cold War strategist who authored the doctrine of containment.

From The Daily Beast

Frieden emphasized that containment will require great care.

From The Daily Beast

Apparently the top management of the joint used these cells for other things than mere containment of unruly prisoners.

From Project Gutenberg

For five decades, we have been successful in applying containment and deterrence in the Cold War.

From Project Gutenberg

He had been shaken and stirred of late out of all his self-containment; Prudence had heard many things from him.

From Project Gutenberg

Ironically, however, the time allocation strategy offered here supports the goal of cost containment.

From Project Gutenberg

And the attitude of the Cabinet since August 1914 had been marked by the utmost caution and self-containment.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• authority
• curb
• discipline
• domination
• force
• government
• jurisdiction
• management
• oversight
• regulation
• restraint
• restriction
• rule
• supervision