retention
/ɹɪˈtɛnʃən/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.81 in modern English
9
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
That which contains something, as a tablet; a means of preserving impressions.
Countable; Obsolete; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "No woman's heart / So big, to hold so much; they lack retention."
- ""Still," Suit echoed. "The way she handles the gun jamming." Suit shook their head in admiration. "Tap, rack, bang, without hesitation. That's extraordinary retention.""
- "Thy gift, thy tables, are within my brain Full character’d with lasting memory, […] That poor retention could not so much hold, Nor need I tallies thy dear love to score;"
- "His life I gave him, and did thereto add / My love without retention or restraint,"
- "The right of retention, which bears a near resemblance to compensation, is chiefly competent where the mutual debts, not being liquid, cannot be the ground of compensation"
Etymology
From Middle English retencioun, borrowed from Latin retentiō, retentiōnis, from retentus, the perfect passive participle of retineō (“retain”) (from re- (“back, again”) + teneō (“hold, keep”)).