contain

verb

con·​tain kən-ˈtān 

contained; containing; contains

transitive verb

1

: 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

2

a

: to have within : hold

The box contains old letters.

b

: comprise, include

The bill contains several new clauses.

3

a

: to be divisible by usually without a remainder

b

: enclose, bound

intransitive verb

: to restrain oneself

containable

kən-ˈtā-nə-bəl 

adjective

Synonyms

• bear
• boast
• hold

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

The Dutch threatened to cut Britain off from trees from the Baltic area (the Rhine empties through Holland), but the British realized that New England contained vast, old growth forests of White Pine. —Eugene Linden, TIME, 21 Apr. 2024

Central banks often lower interest rates to jumpstart lackluster economies, as long as inflation is contained. —Medora Lee, USA TODAY, 21 Apr. 2024

Behind-the-ear hearing aids are styled like old-timey traditional aids, with a plastic case containing the electronics for the hearing aid (including an amplifier and microphone) which sits, well, behind the ear. —Christopher Null, WIRED, 20 Apr. 2024

Mixed into the chili were two socks, each containing a replica of Kelce's Super Bowl ring, and an additional sock with the actual 2018 Super Bowl prize. —Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 19 Apr. 2024

The fee will vary by the environmental footprint of the packaging, giving producers a direct incentive to use packaging for their products that is recyclable and contains more recycled content. —Kevin Bommer, The Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2024

The tablets contain cavity-protection fluoride and, once chewed, foamed up as much as toothpaste in a tube. —Isabella Ubaldi, Verywell Health, 19 Apr. 2024

The six-second clip filmed in black and white contains various shots of Swift, including her writing at a typewriter, throwing a chair into a window while wearing a wedding-esque white gown and staring mysteriously into the camera. —Kelsie Gibson, Peoplemag, 19 Apr. 2024

Three days later, officials with Norfolk Southern and the government decided to puncture holes in some of the cars containing vinyl chloride, a cancer-causing substance used to make plastic pipes. —E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 19 Apr. 2024

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 1

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