Contain Definition
kən-tān
contained, containing, contains
verb
contained, containing, contains
To restrain one's feelings.
Webster's New World
To have in it; hold, enclose, or include.
The can contains tea; the list contains 50 items.
Webster's New World
To have the capacity for holding.
Webster's New World
To have as a component or constituent part; include.
Does the soup contain meat? The poem contains many famous lines.
American Heritage
To be equivalent to.
A gallon contains four quarts.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
Origin of Contain
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From Middle English, from Old French contenir, from Latin continere (“to hold or keep together, comprise, contain”), combined form of con- (“together”) + teneō (“to hold”).
From Wiktionary
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Middle English conteinen from Old French contenir from Latin continēre com- com- tenēre to hold ten- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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