tenere

Italian

Etymology 1

From Latin tenēre, from Proto-Italic *tenēō, stative from Proto-Indo-European *ten- (“to stretch, draw”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /teˈne.re/
• Rhymes: -ere
• Hyphenation: te‧né‧re

Verb

tenére (first-person singular present tèngo, first-person singular past historic ténni or tènni, past participle tenùto, first-person singular future terrò, auxiliary avére)

1. (transitive) to hold

   tieniti il libro in mano ― hold the book in your hands

   tenetelo a meno che lui scappasse dall’istituto

   hold him so that he doesn't escape the institute

   1. to set aside; to conserve
   2. to hold (one's spot in line, etc.)
   3. to reserve
2. (transitive) to keep

   mi sono tenuto la borsa sul grembo ― I kept the bag on my lap

   tenere gli occhi aperti ― to keep one's eyes open

   tenere i soldi sotto il materasso ― to keep the money under the mattress

   tenerlo recluso ― to keep him confined

   tenere la parola ― to keep one's word

3. (transitive, intransitive) to hold up; to sustain

   quel pilastro tiene l'intero edificio

   that pillar holds up the entire building

   il scaffale tiene al peso dei libri

   the shelf holds up against the weight of the books

   il paese tiene nonostante il virus

   the country is holding up despite the virus

4. (transitive) continue to wear; to not remove (a garment); to keep on (a garment)

   ora ancora piove, quindi tieni la giacca

   it's still raining, so keep the jacket on

5. (transitive) to take

   tieni la penna ― take the pen

   tieni la sinistra ― take the left

6. (transitive, sometimes southern Italy) to have; to possess

   tenere un animale domestico ― to have a pet

   puoi tenere i soldi che le avevo prestato

   you can have the money that I had lent her

   tengo una bella casa (southern Italy) ― I have a nice house

   Synonym: avere

7. (transitive) to treat (in a certain way)

   l'ho sempre tenuta come una bambina ― I always treated her as a little girl

8. (transitive) to have employed

   tiene dieci camerieri ― he has ten waiters employed

9. (transitive) to manage

   tenere una trattoria ― to manage a bistro

10. (transitive) to carry out (of a speech, lesson, etc.)
11. (transitive) to have over or keep (at a place)

    tenerla a cena ― to have her over for dinner

    mi ha tenuto a lavorare ― he had me over at work

12. (transitive) to hold back (an impulse, feeling, etc.)

    tenere il pianto ― to hold back one's tears (literally, “one's crying”)

13. (transitive) to look over or take care of
14. (transitive) to assume or take up (a behavior, attitude, etc.)
15. (transitive) to take up (to occupy space)
16. (transitive, informal) to contain
17. (transitive, military) to defend (a position, etc.) from enemy attack

    abbiamo tenuto lo sbocco della valle

    we defended the mouth of the valley

18. (transitive, journalism) to continue coverage of uninteresting or unpressing news, in hopes of future developments
19. (transitive, literary) to consider or deem; to hold to be

    come egli molto l'amava e molto bella la teneva

    how much he loved her and held her to be very beautiful

20. (transitive, archaic) to refrain from spending; to be stingy

    (transitive, archaic or literary) to achieve

21. (intransitive) to stick or attach well [auxiliary avere] (of a glue, etc.)
22. (intransitive) to be airtight [auxiliary avere]
23. (intransitive) to seem colorable; to hold water [auxiliary avere]
24. (intransitive) to last [auxiliary avere]

    un amore che ha tenuto nonostante le criticità ― a love that lasted despite some trying moments

25. (intransitive) to support someone's views, positions, etc. [+ per (object)] [auxiliary avere]

    se tieni per me, votami

    if you support me, vote for me

26. (intransitive) to root [+ per (object) = for] [auxiliary avere]
27. (intransitive) to like or love (in a non romantic way) [+ a (object)] [auxiliary avere]
28. (intransitive, economics) to remain stable [auxiliary avere] (of a currency, stock market, etc.)
29. (intransitive, rare) to look like [auxiliary avere]

Usage notes

• The use of tenere in the sense of avere (“to have”) is typically nonstandard and often associated with the Neapolitan dialect and region.

Conjugation

    Conjugation of tenére (-ere; irregular) (See Appendix:Italian verbs)

infinitive	tenére
auxiliary verb		avére	gerund		tenèndo
present participle		tenènte	past participle		tenùto
person	singular			plural
	first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	tèngo	tièni, tiéni	tiène, tiéne	teniàmo	tenéte	tèngono
imperfect	tenévo	tenévi	tenéva	tenevàmo	tenevàte	tenévano
past historic	ténni, tènni	tenésti	ténne, tènne	tenémmo	tenéste	ténnero, tènnero
future	terrò	terrài	terrà	terrémo	terréte	terrànno
conditional	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	terrèi	terrésti	terrèbbe, terrébbe	terrémmo	terréste	terrèbbero, terrébbero
subjunctive	che io	che tu	che lui/che lei, che esso/che essa	che noi	che voi	che loro, che essi/che esse
present	tènga	tènga	tènga	teniàmo	teniàte	tèngano
imperfect	tenéssi	tenéssi	tenésse	tenéssimo	tenéste	tenéssero
imperative	—	tu	Lei	noi	voi	Loro
		tièni, tiéni	tènga	teniàmo	tenéte	tèngano
negative imperative		non tenére	non tènga	non teniàmo	non tenéte	non tèngano

Including lesser-used forms:

    Conjugation of tenére (-ere; irregular) (See Appendix:Italian verbs)

infinitive	tenére
auxiliary verb		avére	gerund		tenèndo
present participle		tenènte	past participle		tenùto
person	singular			plural
	first	second	third	first	second	third
indicative	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	tèngo, tègno1	tièni	tiène	teniàmo, tegnàmo1	tenéte	tèngono, tègnono1
imperfect	tenévo	tenévi	tenéva	tenevàmo	tenevàte	tenévano
past historic	ténni, tenéi1, tenétti1, tenètti1,2	tenésti	ténne, tené1, tenétte1, tenètte1,2	tenémmo	tenéste	ténnero, tenérono1, tenéttero1, tenèttero1,2
future	terrò	terrài	terrà	terrémo	terréte	terrànno
conditional	io	tu	lui/lei, esso/essa	noi	voi	loro, essi/esse
present	terrèi	terrésti	terrèbbe, terrébbe	terrémmo	terréste	terrèbbero, terrébbero
subjunctive	che io	che tu	che lui/che lei, che esso/che essa	che noi	che voi	che loro, che essi/che esse
present	tènga, tègna1	tènga, tègna1	tènga, tègna1	teniàmo, tegnàmo1	teniàte, tegnàte1	tèngano, tègnano1
imperfect	tenéssi	tenéssi	tenésse	tenéssimo	tenéste	tenéssero
imperative	—	tu	Lei	noi	voi	Loro
		tièni	tènga, tègna1	teniàmo, tegnàmo1	tenéte	tèngano, tègnano1
negative imperative		non tenére	non tènga, non tègna1	non teniàmo, non tegnàmo1	non tenéte	non tèngano, non tègnano1

¹Archaic.
²Traditional.

Related terms

• attenere
• mantenere
• manutenere
• rattenere
• ritenere
• tenere presente
• tenersi
• tenimento
• tenore
• tenuta
• trattenere

 

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɛ.ne.re/
• Rhymes: -ɛnere
• Hyphenation: tè‧ne‧re

Adjective

tenere f pl

1. feminine plural of tenero

Anagrams

• eterne

Latin

Etymology 1

Adverb form of tener.

Adverb

tenerē (comparative tenerius, superlative tenerissimē)

1. tenderly, lovingly

Synonyms

• (tenderly): teneriter

Etymology 2

Verb

tenēre

1. inflection of teneō:
   1. present active infinitive
   2. second-person singular present passive imperative

References

• “tenere”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “tenere”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• tenere in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • (ambiguous) to hold something in one's hand: manu or in manu tenere aliquid
    
  • (ambiguous) to hold fast in the teeth (also metaphorically, obstinately): mordicus tenere aliquid
    
  • (ambiguous) to be scarcely able to restrain one's laughter: risum tenere vix posse
    
  • (ambiguous) to be hardly able to restrain one's tears: lacrimas tenere non posse
    
  • (ambiguous) to abide by one's resolution: propositum, consilium tenere (opp. a proposito deterreri)
    
  • (ambiguous) to remember a thing perfectly: memoriā tenere aliquid
    
  • (ambiguous) to remember a thing perfectly: memoriam alicuius rei tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to have a vivid recollection of a thing: recenti memoria tenere aliquid
    
  • (ambiguous) to insist on a point: tenere aliquid; stare in aliqua re
    
  • (ambiguous) to be well versed in Roman history: memoriam rerum gestarum (rerum Romanarum) tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to be considered the foremost orator: eloquentiae principatum tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to rivet the attention of..: animos tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to observe moderation, be moderate: modum tenere, retinere, servare, adhibere
    
  • (ambiguous) to observe the golden mean: mediocritatem tenere (Off. 1. 25. 89)
    
  • (ambiguous) to remain true to one's principles: institutum tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to never appear in public: domi se tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to be a strict disciplinarian in one's household: severum imperium in suis exercere, tenere (De Sen. 11. 37)
    
  • (ambiguous) to keep up a usage: consuetudinem suam tenere, retinere,[TR1] servare
    
  • (ambiguous) to hold the reins of government: clavum rei publicae tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to occupy the leading position: principatum tenere, obtinere
    
  • (ambiguous) to have power over some one: imperium tenere (in aliquem)
    
  • (ambiguous) to keep the citizens in servile subjection: civitatem servitute oppressam tenere (Dom. 51. 131)
    
  • (ambiguous) to maintain one's right: ius suum tenere, obtinere
    
  • (ambiguous) to be commander-in-chief: imperii summam tenere (Rep. 2. 28)
    
  • (ambiguous) to hold a mountain: tenere montem (B. G. 1. 22)
    
  • (ambiguous) to remain inactive in camp: se (quietum) tenere castris
    
  • (ambiguous) to keep a town in a state of siege: oppidum in obsidione tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to hold on one's course: cursum tenere (opp. commutare and deferri)
    
  • (ambiguous) to steer: clavum tenere
    
  • (ambiguous) to keep the coast and harbours in a state of blockade: litora ac portus custodia clausos tenere
    

Neapolitan

Alternative forms

• tené, tenè (alt. spellings)

Etymology

Inherited from Latin tenēre.

Pronunciation

• (Naples) IPA^(key): [təˈne]
• Rhymes: -e

Verb

tenere

1. to hold
2. to have, possess

   Synonym: avé

References

• AIS: Sprach- und Sachatlas Italiens und der Südschweiz [Linguistic and Ethnographic Atlas of Italy and Southern Switzerland] – map 1701: “forme dell'infinito: dare, potere, volere, sapere, vedere, bere, venire, avere, essere; participio passato: bevuto” – on navigais-web.pd.istc.cnr.it
• Rocco, Emmanuele (1882) “tenere”, in Vocabolario del dialetto napolitano

Tarantino

Etymology

From Latin teneo, tenere.

Verb

tenere

1. (transitive) to hold
2. (transitive) to possess

Conjugation

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

• Present tense:- tènghe, tíne, téne, teníme, teníte, tènene