container

noun

con·​tain·​er kən-ˈtā-nər 

: one that contains: such as

a

: a receptacle (such as a box or jar) for holding goods

b

: a portable compartment in which freight is placed (as on a train or ship) for convenience of movement

containerless

kən-ˈtā-nər-ləs 

adjective

Synonyms

• holder
• receptacle
• vessel

Examples of container in a Sentence

The tea leaves come in a small metal container.

bowls, boxes, jars, and other containers

The shipment of tools arrived at the dock in cargo containers yesterday.

Recent Examples on the Web

Meanwhile, the underlying infrastructure—spanning containers, orchestration layers and APIs—must be fortified to withstand new classes of threats. —Anuj Tyagi, Forbes.com, 16 May 2025

Whenever it's given a task, that task is performed in a distinct container that is preloaded with the user's codebase and is meant to accurately reflect their development environment. —ArsTechnica, 16 May 2025

The meat was not wrapped, covered or in a container. —Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado, Sacbee.com, 16 May 2025

Cascading types have a more spreading form to fill in containers. —Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 16 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English conteyner, from conteynen "to contain" + -er -er entry 2

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing container

• container port
• container ship

Rhymes for container

• abstainer
• campaigner
• complainer
• coplanar
• detainer
• maintainer
• nonplanar
• retainer
• sustainer
• entertainer
• gainer
• plainer

Kids Definition

container

noun

con·​tain·​er kən-ˈtā-nər 

: one that contains

especially : something into which other things can be put (as for storage)