Retain Retained Verb Hold One's Continue Re·Tain English

re·tain
\\ri-ˈtān\\ transitive verb1.
  a. to keep in possession or use
  b. to keep in one's pay or service; specifically : to employ by paying a retainer
  c. to keep in mind or memory :

remember

2. to hold secure or intact
Synonyms: see

retain
  late 14c., from O.Fr. retenir, from L. retinere "hold back," from re- "back" + tenere "to hold" (see tenet). Meaning "keep (another) attached to one's person, keep in service" is from 1450; specifically of lawyers from 1540s.

☞ retain
re·tain / ri5tein / verb [VN] (rather formal)
1. to keep sth; to continue to have sth
   保持；持有；保留；继续拥有
   SYN 

preserve

:
   to retain your independence
   保持独立
   He struggled to retain control of the situation.
   他曾努力保持对局势的控制。
   The house retains much of its original charm.
   这所房子保留了许多原有的魅力。
   She retained her tennis title for the third year.
   她第三年保住了网球冠军的头衔。
2. to continue to hold or contain sth
   保持；继续容纳:
   a soil that retains moisture
   保持水分的土壤
   This information is no longer retained within the computer's main memory.
   这样的数据不再保留在计算机的主存贮器中。
  (figurative) She has a good memory and finds it easy to retain facts.
   她记忆力好,很容易记住事情。
3. (law 律) if a member of the public retains sb such as a lawyer, he or she pays money regularly or in advance so the lawyer, etc. will do work for him or her
   聘请(律师等):
   a retaining fee
   给所委托律师的预付辩护费
   to retain the services of a lawyer
   聘定律师
⇨ see also

retention

,

retentive

retain verb

re·tain
\rə̇ˈtān, rēˈ-\ verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English reteinen, retainen, from Middle French retenir, from Old French, from Latin retinēre, from re- + -tinēre (from tenēre to hold) — more at
transitive verb
1. obsolete : ,
2.
 a. : to hold or continue to hold in possession or use : continue to have, use, recognize, or accept : maintain in one's keeping
  < a person does not always retain his human form or qualities — Frederica de Laguna >
  < some of the terms are retained today because of constant use — R.L.Whistler >
  < retained his seat on the bench of the Supreme Court — T.P.Abernethy >
 b. : to keep in pay or in one's service
  < was retained to make a survey of operations of the agency — Current Biography >
  < retains the clinic to examine all its employees — Stuart Chase >
 specifically : to employ (a lawyer) by paying a preliminary fee that secures a prior claim upon services in case of need
 c. : to keep in mind or memory :
  < each of the principals in his way has retained the imprint of a hideous scene — Sylvia Berkman >
3. : to hold secure or intact (as in a fixed place or condition) : prevent escape, loss, leakage, or detachment of
 < the habit of chewing betel leaf and retaining the cud against the mucous lining of the cheek — New York Times Magazine >
 < available water which could be … retained by small dams — F.J.R.Rodd >
 < modern mammals … retained the egg within the body after fertilization — Weston La Barre >
intransitive verb
obsolete : to serve as a retainer : ,

Synonyms: see