retainer

English

Etymology

From retain +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɹɪˈteɪn.ə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ɹɪˈteɪn.ɚ/, /ɹəˈteɪn.ɚ/
• Rhymes: -eɪnə(ɹ)

Noun

retainer (plural retainers)

1. Any thing or person that retains.
2. A dependent or follower of someone of rank.
   • 2021 October 19, David Graeber, David Wengrowr, “Unfreezing the ice age: the truth about humanity’s deep past”, in The Guardian, UK:

     If they possessed the means to marshal labour, pile up food resources and provender armies of year-round retainers, what sort of royalty would consciously elect not to do so.

3. A paid servant, especially one who has been employed for many years.
4. A fee one pays to reserve the other's time for services.

   This lawyer charges a retainer for his work.

5. (dentistry) A device that holds teeth in position after orthodontic treatment.
   • 1981, “Too Drunk to Fuck”, performed by Dead Kennedys:

     You give me head / It makes it worse / Take out your fuckin' retainer / Put it in your purse

6. (rail transport, mechanical engineering) A retaining valve.

Derived terms

• general retainer
• special retainer

Related terms

English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ten- (1 c, 62 e)

Translations

any thing or person that retains

• Bulgarian: задръжка (bg) f (zadrǎžka)
• Finnish: pidike (fi), pidäke (fi)

dependent or follower

• Bulgarian: слуга (bg) m (sluga), васал m (vasal)
• Egyptian: (šmsw)
• Esperanto: akompananto
• French: suite (fr) f
• German: Dienstmann (de) m, Gefolgsmann (de) m, Vasall (de) m
• Japanese: 家来 (ja) (けらい, kerai)
• Middle English: hirdman

paid servant

• Bengali: নওকর (bn) (nôukôr)
• Bulgarian: слуга (bg) m (sluga)
• Egyptian: (šmsw)
• Finnish: palvelija (fi)
• French: serviteur (fr) m
• German: Bediensteter (de) m
• Japanese: 臣下 (ja) (shinka)
• Russian: слуга́ (ru) m (slugá)
• Spanish: criado (es) m

fee

• Bulgarian: предплата (bg) f (predplata)
• Finnish: ennakkopalkkio, ennakkomaksu (fi)
• French: avance (fr) f
• Manx: argid kianglee m
• Russian: предвари́тельный гонора́р m (predvarítelʹnyj gonorár)

dentistry: device

• Dutch: retentiebeugel
• Finnish: hammastuki
• French: faux-palais (fr) m, contention (fr) f
• German: Retainer, Zahnspange (de) f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: regulering m or f

  Nynorsk: regulering f

• Polish: aparat ortodontyczny m
• Portuguese: aparelho (pt) m
• Spanish: retenedor m

See also

• brace

Anagrams

• Arretine, Eretrian, Eritrean, Renteria, rain tree, rain-tree, raintree