contain

/kən'tein/

Thân thiện

The firefighters work to contain the forest fire.

Definition

1. Verb:
   • To have within or hold: To have something inside or as a part of itself.
   • To keep within limits; restrain or control: To hold back or keep something from spreading or increasing.
   • To be divisible by (Mathematics): For one number to be exactly divisible by another.

Usage and Examples

• To have within:
  • This bottle contains water. (The bottle has water inside it.)
  • The report contains important data. (The report includes important data as part of it.)
• To keep within limits; control:
  • She struggled to contain her laughter. (She tried hard to hold back her laughter.)
  • Firefighters worked to contain the wildfire. (They worked to stop the fire from spreading.)
• Mathematics: To be divisible by:
  • 10 contains 5. (10 can be divided by 5 without a remainder.)

Advanced Usage

• "To contain oneself": To control one's emotions or reactions.
  • He could barely contain himself with excitement. (He could hardly control his excitement.)
• "To be contained within": To be enclosed or limited to a specific area or scope.
  • The problem is contained within the department. (The problem is limited to and does not spread beyond that department.)

Variants and Related Words

• Container (n): An object such as a box, bottle, or jar used for holding something.
  • She packed her lunch in a plastic container.
• Containment (n): The action of keeping something harmful under control or within limits.
  • The policy focused on the containment of the disease.

Synonyms

• Hold: To have or keep within.
• Include: To have as a part of a whole.
• Restrain: To prevent from doing something; to keep under control.
• Enclose: To surround or close off on all sides.

Related Phrasal Verbs

(The word "contain" itself does not commonly form phrasal verbs. Its meaning is typically expressed through the verb alone.)

Related Idioms

• "To contain multitudes": To have a complex character with many different, sometimes contradictory, qualities or aspects. (A literary reference from Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself").
  • The character in the novel contains multitudes; she is both kind and ruthless.

Học thuật

Verb

1. hold back, as of a danger or an enemy; check the expansion or influence of
   • Arrest the downward trend
   • Check the growth of communism in South East Asia
   • Contain the rebel movement
   • Turn back the tide of communism
2. be capable of holding or containing
   • This box won't take all the items
   • The flask holds one gallon
3. be divisible by
   • 24 contains 6
4. lessen the intensity of; temper; hold in restraint; hold or keep within limits
   • moderate your alcohol intake
   • hold your tongue
   • hold your temper
   • control your anger
5. contain or hold; have within
   • The jar carries wine
   • The canteen holds fresh water
   • This can contains water
6. include or contain; have as a component
   • A totally new idea is comprised in this paper
   • The record contains many old songs from the 1930's

Từ đồng nghĩa

• check
• turn back
• arrest
• stop
• hold back
• take
• hold
• control
• hold in
• curb
• moderate
• bear
• carry
• incorporate
• comprise