retener

Borrowed from Latin retinēre, with conjugation based on tener.

• IPA^(key): /reteˈneɾ/ [re.t̪eˈneɾ]
• Rhymes: -eɾ
• Syllabification: re‧te‧ner

retener (first-person singular present retengo, first-person singular preterite retuve, past participle retenido)

1. to retain, to remember

   Synonym: detentar

2. to withhold, hold, to keep

   Synonyms: guardar, mantener, quedar

3. to hold back

   No tengo muy claro si es lo que realmente quiero, por una parte quiero abrazarte y besarte, pero algo me retiene, no sé el que.

   I'm not sure if it is what I really want, because a part of me wants to hug you and kiss you, but something, I don't know what, is holding me back.

4. to catch, to detain
5. (chemistry) to sequester

• “retener”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28