contain

verb

con·​tain kən-ˈtān 

contained; containing; contains

transitive verb

1

a

: to have within : hold

The box contains old letters.

b

: comprise, include

The bill contains several new clauses.

2

: to keep within limits: such as

a

: restrain, control

could hardly contain her enthusiasm

b

: check, halt

contain the spread of a deadly disease

Firefighters contained the wildfire.

c

: to follow successfully a policy of containment toward

efforts to contain Communism

d

: to prevent (an enemy or opponent) from advancing or from making a successful attack

3

a

: to be divisible by usually without a remainder

b

: enclose, bound

intransitive verb

: to keep oneself under control

When I saw them after so many years, I could hardly contain myself. [=control my feelings]

containable

kən-ˈtā-nə-bəl 

adjective

Synonyms of contain

• hold
• boast

Choose the Right Synonym for contain

contain, hold, accommodate mean to have or be capable of having within.

contain implies the actual presence of a specified substance or quantity within something.

the can contains a quart of oil

hold implies the capacity of containing or the usual or permanent function of containing or keeping.

the bookcase will hold all my textbooks

accommodate stresses holding without crowding or inconvenience.

the hall can accommodate 500 people

Examples of contain in a Sentence

The room was barely big enough to contain everyone who came to the meeting.

The book contains over 200 recipes.

The article contains information on how to plan your retirement.

foods that contain a high level of fat

The movie contains something for both children and adults.

State health officials have succeeded in containing the virus.

Recent Examples on the Web

Taiwanese authorities in March investigated three men for trying to smuggle Super Micro computer servers containing advanced Nvidia chips to China. — ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026

The real causes of inflammation are dietary patterns that contain too many calories, too much sugar, or too much saturated fat. — Marie Bladt, Vogue, 11 Aug. 2026

In light of these issues, the commission recommended against fracking in the southern Tampico-Misantla basin, but redirected fracking to basins that contain saltwater rather than freshwater aquifers. — Ian Dexter Palmer, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2026

Occasionally, Navalna’s grandmother, who was still living in Mariupol, came to drop off a care package, which sometimes contained hard candies. — Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English conteynen, borrowed from Anglo-French cunteign-, cunteyn-, present tense stem of contenir, cuntenir, going back (with conjugation change) to Latin continēre "to hold together, restrain, have as contents," from con- con- + tenēre "to hold, occupy, possess" — more at tenant entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Rhymes for contain

• abstain
• airplane
• alkane
• arcane
• arraign
• attain
• backplane
• betaine
• biplane
• blockchain
• butane
• campaign

Kids Definition

contain

verb

con·​tain kən-ˈtān 

1

: to keep within limits : restrain, check

tried to contain my laughter

the forest fire was finally contained

2

: to have within

3

: to consist of : include

4

: to be divisible by especially without a remainder

20 contains 5

containment

-ˈtān-mənt

noun