self-contained
2
5.9
- adjective
- /ˌsɛlf kənˈteɪnd/
- Even in stressful situations, she remained a self-contained individual, displaying calm and composure.
- a self-contained man
- a self-contained person
- quiet and self-contained
Loading YouTube…
Watch on YouTubeThe students who felt ready, confident, self-contained about this idea.
- The students who felt ready, confident, self-contained about this idea.
- Anger in boiling, simmering, you know, self-contained, seething.
Examples
-
The girl was self-contained, dark-haired, and beautiful; she was young but at the same time mythical, like Cleopatra.
Academic text (2007) -
I think he should come along with me, but he seems so self-contained.
Fiction book (2000) -
You are the first, but you will pay the same price all of them will pay me, she said, now perfectly calm and self-contained.
Fiction book (1994) -
I think I could turn and live with animals; they are so placid and self-contained.
Academic text (2011) -
She's always been a little self-contained.
Fiction book (1998) -
They were very self-contained and went for long walks with their dog.
Fiction book (1999) -
Hollis has the anxious look of an errand boy, while Buddy is self-contained and quietly forceful for his age.
Fiction book (1996) -
Moses has a self-contained demeanor that impresses his classmates with its peacefulness.
-
The self-contained expression on her face suggested she was in control of her emotions.
Synonyms
23
3.9
Calm and in control during a difficult situation
17
5.1
Calm and confident in a difficult situation
11
4.1
Confident about your abilities and decisions
4
7.2
Calm and confident in control of your feelings in difficult situations
1
9.5
Calm and steady in difficult situations
1
6.1
Calm and in control of your feelings in difficult situations
Antonyms
How Composed
2
5.9
4
7.2
20
4.3
680
1.0
92
3.2
84
4.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
self-contained = contained (semi-transparent) = self + contain + ed
Adding self- to contained is compositionally straightforward, because the form clearly signals something characterized by being contained in or by oneself.
Etymology
Self-contained comes from self ('oneself') and contain ('to hold inside'), so a self-contained person keeps their feelings 'inside' and appears calm and in control.