Basic Details
Word: Retained
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Kept or continued to have something. It is the past tense of retain.
Synonyms: kept, held, preserved, maintained
Antonyms: lost, released, discarded
How to Spell Retained
Syllables: re - tained
Tricky part: The long a sound is spelt ai, and the n stays single before ed. Students write retaned or retainned.
Watch out for: retaned, reteined, retainned
Memory tip: Retained, maintained and contained all share the same tail, -tained. Learn one and you can spell all three.
Usage Examples
Example 1: India retained the trophy after a thrilling final.
Example 2: The old haveli has retained its painted ceilings.
Example 3: The sand retained the heat long after sunset.
Fun Fact
Camels can go a week or more without drinking in the desert, partly because their kidneys retain water so well.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word retained as used in the sentence:
Despite the fire, the old fort retained most of its stone walls.
a) preserved
b) kept
c) held
d) lost
Show answer
d) lost. The fort kept its walls; the opposite would be that it lost them.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
Even after forty years in Mumbai, my grandfather has retaned the soft Kannada accent of his village near Mysuru.
a) retaned
b) grandfather
c) village
d) accent
Show answer
a) retaned. Retain is spelt with ai, like rain, and the past tense keeps it.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:
After the merger, the company ndteirea all of its workers.
a) detained
b) retained
c) retrained
d) obtained
Show answer
b) retained. Detained and obtained have no r, and retrained has one r too many; with a single r and a t, it is retained.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A retaining wall is built to ____.
a) keep birds away
b) hold back soil or water
c) decorate a garden
d) let light into a room
Show answer
b) hold back soil or water
2. A fact you have retained is one you ____.
a) never learnt
b) made up
c) have forgotten
d) still remember
Show answer
d) still remember
