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Pertain comes to English via Anglo-French from the Latin verb pertinēre, meaning "to reach to" or "to belong." Pertinēre, in turn, was formed by combining the prefix per- (meaning "through") and tenēre ("to hold"). Tenēre is a popular root in English words and often manifests with the -tain spelling that can be seen in pertain. Other descendants include abstain, contain, detain, maintain, obtain, retain, and sustain, to name a few of the more common ones. Not every -tain word has tenēre in its ancestry, though. Ascertain, attain, and certain are certainly exceptions. And a few tenēre words don't follow the usual pattern: tenacious and tenure are two.
Examples of pertain in a Sentence
Caitlin Huston, HollywoodReporter, 19 Dec. 2025
With the passage of the new law, Bondi is required to release — in a searchable and downloadable format— all unclassified records, documents, communications and investigative materials in the Justice Department’s possession that pertain to Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 18 Dec. 2025
Also unclear is whether the disagreement pertains only to the ratio of subscriber to non-subscriber streams, or whether YouTube also disputes what Billboard counts as an on-demand stream.
—Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 18 Dec. 2025
An insanity defense, by contrast, pertains to the defendant’s mental state at the time of the crime.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pertain
Cite this Entry
“Pertain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pertain. Accessed 23 Dec. 2025.
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pertain
verb
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