English → Latin
“contain” in Latin
contineōto hold, keep, connect, contain, maintain; to hold or keep together/close; connect, surround; to keep in, enclose, boundcomplectorto embrace or hug; to encircle, surround, encompass; to comprehend, understandcomprehendōto lay hold of something on all sides; take or catch hold of, grasp, grip; to seize upon in a hostile manner, lay hold ocohibeōto hold together, contain, confine, comprise; to keep (back), hinder, stay, stop, restrain; to hold in check, limit, repcoërceōto enclose on all sides, hold together; surround, encompass; to curb, restrain, tame, correct, appease; to restrain, kee
The English word contain itself goes back to Latin teneō, through continēre.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
contain
To hold (as a vessel, etc.), continere. complecti: comprehendere: habere (e.g., quid tandem habuit liber iste, quod, etc., what after all did the book contain, which, etc., Vid: Cic., Brut., 4, 14): to be contained in anything, aliqua re contineri; in aliqua re inesse: to be contained in philosophical works, philosophorum libris contineri, (Cic.).
Restrain; to contain one’s self, se tenere, cohibere, coercere or continere, potentem sui or mentis esse: compotem esse sui, or mentis, or animi: in potestate mentis esse: to be hardly able to contain oneself, vix se continere posse, quin, etc., vix temperare sibi posse, quin, etc.: I can hardly contain myself, vix comprimor, quin, etc. (Vid: Plaut., Most., 1, 3, 46): to be unable to contain one’s self, sui non potentem or sui impotentem esse: sui non compotem esse; also non apud se esse (to be beside one’s self; e.g., prae iracundia, not to contain one’s anger): to contain one’s anger, iram reprimere: not to contain one’s anger, ira teneri: not to be able to contain one’s anger, impotentem esse irae: to contain anybody in his duty (Spenser), coercere aliquem et in officio continere; to contain one’s tears, lacrimas tenere: fletum reprimere: lacrimis temperare (Cic.): one’s laughter, risum tenere, rontinere. Vid: RESTRAIN.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for contain?
- The usual Latin words for “contain” are contineō, complector, comprehendō; also cohibeō, coërceō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.