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   Con·tain

   /kənˈtān/

   

   verb

   • 1. have or hold (someone or something) within: "coffee cans that once contained a full pound of coffee" Similar holdhave room/space/seating/capacity forcarryaccommodateseat
   • ▪ be made up of (a number of things); consist of: "borscht can contain mainly beets or a number of vegetables" Similar includecomprisetake inincorporateinvolveencompassembraceembodyconsist ofbe made upbe composed of
   • ▪ (of a number) be divisible by (a factor) without a remainder: "since F contains the factor Q it disappears from both sides of the equation"
   • 2. control or restrain (oneself or a feeling): "she was scarcely able to contain herself as she waited to spill the beans" Similar restraincurbrein insuppressrepressstiflesubduequelllimitswallowbottle upkeep under controlkeep backhold inkeep in checkcontrolmastergain control overgain mastery over
   • ▪ prevent (a severe problem) from increasing in extent or intensity: "a reassuring statement on efforts to contain the disaster"

   Word Origin Middle English: from Old French contenir, from Latin continere, from con- ‘altogether’ + tenere ‘to hold’.

   Derivatives

   • 1. containable adjective

   Scrabble Points: 9

   • C

     3

   • O

     1

   • N

     1

   • T

     1

   • A

     1

   • I

     1

   • N

     1

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