retain
to keep possession of.
to continue to use, practice, etc.: to retain an old custom.
to continue to hold or have: to retain a prisoner in custody; a cloth that retains its color.
to keep in mind; remember.
to hold in place or position.
to engage, especially by payment of a preliminary fee: to retain a lawyer.
Medicine/Medical. to keep in the body, especially abnormally; fail to eliminate: I was referred to a specialty clinic and they discovered that I was retaining urine.
Origin of retain
1synonym study For retain
Other words for retain
Opposites for retain
Other words from retain
- re·tain·a·ble, adjective
- re·tain·a·bil·i·ty [ri-tey-nuh-bil-i-tee], /rɪˌteɪ nəˈbɪl ɪ ti/, re·tain·a·ble·ness, noun
- re·tain·ment, noun
- non·re·tain·a·ble, adjective
- non·re·tain·ment, noun
- un·re·tain·a·ble, adjective
- un·re·tain·ing, adjective
Words Nearby retain
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use retain in a sentence
He successfully leveraged skepticism about the system to aid his own ambitions to retain power.
What happens to an entrenched two-party system when one party undermines the system? | Philip Bump | February 12, 2021 | Washington PostThe one thing that you have to retain is being able to celebrate you and your achievements, not as contrasted to anybody else’s.
How Gideon the Ninth author Tamsyn Muir queers the space opera | Constance Grady | February 5, 2021 | VoxHe legally retains authority over much of her day-to-day life, though he temporarily stepped away from that role in 2019.
Britney Spears and the trauma of being young, female and famous in the ’90s | Ashley Fetters | February 5, 2021 | Washington PostThis allows the cheese to retain its moisture and results in that smooth, Velveeta-like texture we love so much.
Scientific tips for making perfect nacho cheese | Sandra Gutierrez G. | February 4, 2021 | Popular-ScienceResearchers seem to agree that as children’s ability to retain memories emerges, their ability to recall particular events is increased when adults talk to them about what they experienced after the fact.
What happens to our lost childhood memories? Motherhood sent me looking for answers. | Missy Ryan | February 4, 2021 | Washington Post
And despite the good scholarship the authors have managed to retain the buoyancy and upbeat air attendant on most comics.
Now both breweries are fighting to retain their half of the cake.
House of the Witch: The Renegade Craft Brewers of Panama | Jeff Campagna | November 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWe still retain the 27 November habit, through sheer gluttony more than anything else.
Canada and the United States are the only industrialized countries that retain birthright citizenship.
Get Ready to Start Hearing About ‘Executive Amnesty for Anchor Babies’ | Eleanor Clift | November 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTRohrabacher though did retain the bottle for official use in his Washington, D.C. office.
Meditation Rugs, Swords, and Horse Head Fiddles: The Strangest Gifts Given to Government Bigwigs | Ben Jacobs | November 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTStill the King managed to retain his popularity, and in his own way attempted to ameliorate the lot of his subjects.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-PattisonThe latter, on his side, was anxious to retain Massna's affections, and at once offered him the command of the Army of Italy.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-PattisonSince he died from cancer in the stomach, he could retain very little food.
Assimilative Memory | Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)Few students master these attachments thoroughly, and those who do, fail to retain them long.
Assimilative Memory | Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)They know where to find the coveted knowledge, but they do not possess it or retain it in their minds.
Assimilative Memory | Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)
British Dictionary definitions for retain
/ (rɪˈteɪn) /
to keep in one's possession
to be able to hold or contain: soil that retains water
(of a person) to be able to remember (information, facts, etc) without difficulty
to hold in position
to keep for one's future use, as by paying a retainer or nominal charge: to retain one's rooms for the holidays
law to engage the services of (a barrister) by payment of a preliminary fee
(in selling races) to buy back a winner that one owns when it is auctioned after the race
(of racehorse trainers) to pay an advance fee to (a jockey) so as to have prior or exclusive claims upon his services throughout the season
Origin of retain
1Derived forms of retain
- retainable, adjective
- retainment, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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