retain

Where “retain” sits in English frequency

Definition

1. 1
   Often followed by from: to hold back (someone or something); to check, to prevent, to restrain, to stop.
2. 2
   Often followed by from: to hold back (someone or something); to check, to prevent, to restrain, to stop.
3. 3
   Of a thing: to hold or keep (something) inside it; to contain.
4. 4
   Of a thing: to hold or keep (something) inside it; to contain.
5. 5
   To hold (something) secure; to prevent (something) from becoming detached or separated.
6. 6
   To keep (something) in control or possession; to continue having (something); to keep back.
7. 7
   To keep (something) in control or possession; to continue having (something); to keep back.
8. 8
   To keep (something) in place or use, instead of removing or abolishing it; to preserve.
9. 9
   To engage or hire (someone), especially temporarily.
10. 10
    To engage or hire (someone), especially temporarily.
11. 11
    To keep (someone) in one's pay or service; also, (chiefly historical) to maintain (someone) as a dependent or follower.
12. 12
    To control or restrain (oneself); to exercise self-control over (oneself).
13. 13
    To keep (someone) in custody; to prevent (someone) from leaving.
14. 14
    To declare (a sin) not forgiven.
15. 15
    To keep in control or possession; to continue having.
16. 16
    To have the ability to keep something in the mind; to use the memory.
17. 17
    Of a body or body organ: to hold back tissue or a substance.
18. 18
    To refrain from doing something.
19. 19
    To be a dependent or follower to someone.
20. 20
    To continue, to remain.

Etymology

From Late Middle English reteinen, retein (“to continue to keep, retain; to continue to possess; to possess; to contain; to draw back, retire; to hold back, restrain; to keep in mind, remember; to take back, repossess; to appoint; to engage in one’s service, employ, hire”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman reteiner, retenir [and other forms], Middle French retenir, and Old French retenir (“to keep back, retain; to keep, maintain, preserve; to possess; to engage in one’s service, employ; to detain; to hold back, restrain; to remember”) (modern French retenir), from Vulgar Latin *retinīre, from Latin retinēre, the present active infinitive of retineō (“to keep or hold back, detain, retain; to hold in check, stop; to hold fast, maintain; to keep in mind, remember”) (compare Late Latin retineō (“to keep engaged in one’s service”)), from re- (prefix meaning ‘again’) + teneō (“to grasp, hold; to hold fast, restrain; to possess; to keep in mind, remember”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ten- (“to extend, stretch”)). Etymology 1 sense 1.10 (“to declare (a sin) not forgiven”) is derived from John 20:23 in the Bible, in Late Latin quorum retinueritis, retenta sunt, and in Koine Greek ἄν τινων κρατῆτε, κεκράτηνται: see the 1526 quotation. Cognates * Catalan retenir * Italian retenere (obsolete), ritenere * Portuguese reter * Spanish retener

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

• ertain
• reatin
• retainn
• retani
• retian
• rettain
• rretain
• rteain

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of retain - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

Frequently Asked Questions

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "retain", not the corpus desk frequency band.