Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- transitive verb To keep possession of; continue to have: synonym: keep.
- transitive verb To keep in a particular place or condition.
- transitive verb To continue to have as a feature or aspect.
- transitive verb To keep in mind; remember.
- transitive verb To require (a student) to repeat a class or grade because of insufficient educational progress to advance.
- transitive verb To keep in one's service or pay.
- transitive verb To hire (an attorney, for example) by the payment of a fee.
- transitive verb To hire someone for (his or her services).
from The Century Dictionary.
- To hold back; restrain; hinder from action, departure, or escape; keep back; detain.
- To hold or keep in possession; reserve as one's own.
- To continue in the use or practice of; preserve; keep up; keep from dying out: as, to
retain a custom; to retain an appearance of youth. - To keep in mind; preserve a knowledge or idea of; remember.
- To keep in pay; hire; take into service; especially, to engage by the payment of a preliminary fee: as, to
retain counsel. - To entertain.
- =Syn. 2–4. Reserve, Preserve, etc. See
keep . - To keep on: continue.
- To pertain; belong; be a dependent or retainer.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To continue to hold; to keep in possession; not to lose, part with, or dismiss; to restrain from departure, escape, or the like.
- transitive verb To keep in pay; to employ by a preliminary fee paid; to hire; to engage.
- transitive verb obsolete To restrain; to prevent.
- transitive verb (Arch. & Engin.) a wall built to keep any movable backing, or a bank of sand or earth, in its place; -- called also
retain wall . - intransitive verb obsolete To belong; to pertain.
- intransitive verb obsolete To keep; to continue; to remain.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb transitive To
keep inpossession oruse . - verb transitive To
keep in one'spay orservice . - verb transitive To
employ by paying aretainer . - verb transitive To
hold secure . - verb obsolete To
belong ; topertain .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb keep in one's mind
- verb hold back within
- verb secure and keep for possible future use or application
- verb allow to remain in a place or position or maintain a property or feature
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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But when half the drivers on the road are "car thieves," does the term retain its meaning?
Black Star Rising 2009
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I read over 100 books a year, and what I retain is usually the general storyline and my impression of the characters.
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The natural acidity that cool evenings and long, slow growing seasons retain is key.
LENNDEVOURS: 2009
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The natural acidity that cool evenings and long, slow growing seasons retain is key.
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The natural acidity that cool evenings and long, slow growing seasons retain is key.
Long Island Wine 2009
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While Ariel worked on the page designs, we talked about the content – what to retain from the old site, what to add and what to discard.
Writer Unboxed » Blog Archive » The evolution of a new website 2009
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It takes a lot of work and dedication to make this kind of thing happen, and so in some senses that 85% that they retain is a bet that the best ideas that come in will actually be lucrative enough to offset their efforts in organizing the contest.
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What has made her name retain its magic for decades?
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The only words in the English language, in which _h_ is written, but not pronounced, are words derived from Latin through the French; but of these, many in English retain the aspirate, though in French nearly all lose it.
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[8: 15] But that on the good ground signifies those who, with a noble and good heart, hearing the word retain it, and bear fruit persistently.
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