retainretain

The story

From Late Middle English reteinen, retein (‘to continue to keep, retain; to continue to possess; to possess; to contain; to draw back, retire; to hold back, restrain; to keep in mind, remember; to take back, repossess; to appoint; to engage in one’s service, employ, hire’) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman reteiner, retenir [and other forms], Middle French retenir, and Old French retenir (‘to keep back, retain; to keep, maintain, preserve; to possess; to engage in one’s service, employ; to detain; to hold back, restrain; to remember’) (modern French retenir), from Vulgar Latin *retinīre, from Latin retinēre, the present active infinitive of retineō (‘to keep or hold back, detain, retain; to hold in check, stop; to hold fast, maintain; to keep in mind, remember’) (compare Late Latin retineō (‘to keep engaged in one’s service’)), from re- (prefix meaning ‘again’) + teneō (‘to grasp, hold; to hold fast, restrain; to possess; to keep in mind, remember’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ten- (‘to extend, stretch’)). Etymology 1 sense 1.10 (‘to declare (a sin) not forgiven’) is derived from John 20:23 in the Bible, in Late Latin quorum retinueritis, retenta sunt, and in Koine Greek ἄν τινων κρατῆτε, κεκράτηνται: see the 1526 quotation.