containing

present participle of contain
1
as in holding
to have within the top drawer of the cabinet contains my stamp collection

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
3
4
as in composing
to gain emotional or mental control of could hardly contain herself when she heard that she had won the scholarship

Synonyms & Similar Words

5

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of containing By Wednesday evening, the fire crew succeeded in containing 20% of the wildfire. Ca Wildfire Bot, Sacbee.com, 4 Sep. 2025 Goudstikker left the paintings behind but took a black notebook containing the details of his collection, which helped his family recover the lost artwork. Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025 In the end, Andrew and Alexe chose love, and they were presented with three envelopes containing money up to $250,000. Monica Mercuri, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 Many airline passengers know not to bring carry-on bags containing alcohol and firearms with them to the airport. Cheryl V. Jackson, IndyStar, 21 Aug. 2025 Later, the reporter opened the bag at a subway station, discovering inside a red envelope containing at least a $100 bill and several $20 bills. Elaine Mallon, Baltimore Sun, 21 Aug. 2025 But why would someone leave behind a laptop containing incriminating information against themselves? Time, 21 Aug. 2025 Gunfire ensued when Ratliff came out of the vault with a sack containing money. Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 24 Dec. 2024 Those are akin to having put together examples of people playing a sport, some examples containing no mistakes, and other examples revealing discernable mistakes. Lance Eliot, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for containing
Verb
  • In the photo, Elordi stood behind Romy, holding a glass of wine as Romy stuck her tongue out at the camera.
    Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The Packers controlled the line of scrimmage, holding the league’s top-scoring offense from 2024 to just 13 points.
    Zak Keefer, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • The boats offer a low-effort way to spy on some of the coolest marine life in the region, including bat rays and even the occasional shark.
    Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 7 Sep. 2025
  • Netflix cofounder Reed Hastings joined the company’s board in May 2025 after giving more than $20 million to Democrats, including $7 million to a pro-Harris super PAC.
    Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 7 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • The homeowner’s suite, comprising a large bedroom, a sitting/dressing room, lots of closet space, and a bathroom with marble vanities, spills onto a deck overlooking the yard.
    Mark David, Robb Report, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The group—wholly-owned by Swedish investment firm Mellby Gård—currently sells secondhand children’s clothing in 55 stores across four markets—comprising 16 percent and 13 percent, respectively, of the company’s internal (and conservative) reach of 340 stores across 30 markets.
    Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Time saved in data collection can be devoted to results, whether composing a report, translating documents, developing a marketing strategy or creating new software.
    Morey Haber, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025
  • Williams, 93 years old and still composing music, should be left alone and left to do his more important creative tasks.
    Tim Greiving, HollywoodReporter, 27 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • However, there's a significant difference between containing and controlling a wildfire.
    CA WILDFIRE BOT, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025
  • Merino wool also has natural temperature-regulating and odor-controlling properties—both of which are ideal for hiking.
    Anne Taylor, Travel + Leisure, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • The 94-year-old media titan has ensured that his vast corporate empire — boasting Fox News, the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post among other titles — will retain its quintessential conservative identity after his death.
    David Folkenflik, NPR, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Sanders has started to follow in her mother's footsteps by modeling, while also boasting a significant following on social media.
    Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • But if the evidence shows Aspiration merely wanted to pay Leonard to get his endorsement, a conspiracy theory involving Ballmer and the Clippers would take a hit.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 5 Sep. 2025
  • These reports have been part of the narrative from the beginning, as has been another idea Morgan brought up, surrounding the fact that there was no real primary involving Harris since Biden retired so late into the campaign.
    Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 5 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Essentially, soft and joyful music may reduce this effect by easing emotional tension, redirecting attention and calming physiological responses triggered by motion sickness.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 Sep. 2025
  • The child was crying and 23-year-old Alvina Omisiri Agba, fron Luton, England, offered to take the child to try calming him or her down.
    David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Containing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/containing. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

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