Often, reins.a leather strap, fastened to each end of the bit of a bridle, by which the rider or driver controls a horse or other animal by pulling so as to exert pressure on the bit.
2.
any of certain other straps or thongs forming part of a harness, as a checkrein.
3.
any means of curbing, controlling, or directing; check; restraint.
4.
reins, the controlling or directing power: the reins of government.
–verb (used with object)
5.
to check or guide (a horse or other animal) by exerting pressure on a bridle bit by means of the reins.
6.
to curb; restrain; control.
–verb (used without object)
7.
to obey the reins: a horse that reins well.
8.
to rein a horse or other animal.
—Idioms
9.
draw rein, to curtail one's speed or progress; halt: The rider saw the snake and drew rein sharply.
10.
give rein to, to give complete freedom to; indulge freely: to give rein to one's imagination. Also, give free rein to, give full rein to.
[Origin: 1300–50; (n.) ME rene, reine, raine < OF re(s)ne < VL *retina, n. deriv. of L retinére to hold back, retain; (v.) ME rainen, reinen, deriv. of the n.]
A long narrow leather strap attached to each end of the bit of a bridle and used by a rider or driver to control a horse or other animal. Often used in the plural.
A means of restraint, check, or guidance.
A means or an instrument by which power is exercised. Often used in the plural: the reins of government.
v.
reined, rein·ing, reins
v.
tr.
To check or hold back by or as if by the use of reins. Often with in, back, or up.
To restrain or control.
v.
intr.
To control a horse, for example, with reins.
[Middle English, from Old French resne, reine, from Vulgar Latin *retina, from Latin retinēre, to retain; see retain.]
c.1300, "strap fastened to a bridle," from O.Fr. rene, probably from V.L. *retina "a bond, check," back-formation from L. retinere "hold back" (see retain). The verb is c.1300, from the noun. Figurative extension "put a check on" first recorded 1588.
Give\ (g[i^]v), v. t. [imp. Gave (g[=a]v); p. p. Given (g[i^]v"'n); p. pr. & vb. n. Giving.] [OE. given, yiven, yeven, AS. gifan, giefan; akin to D. geven, OS. ge[eth]an, OHG. geban, G. geben, Icel. gefa, Sw. gifva, Dan. give, Goth. giban. Cf. Gift, n.]1. To bestow without receiving a return; to confer without compensation; to impart, as a possession; to grant, as authority or permission; to yield up or allow. For generous lords had rather give than pay. --Young. 2. To yield possesion of; to deliver over, as property, in exchange for something; to pay; as, we give the value of what we buy. What shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? --Matt. xvi. 26. 3. To yield; to furnish; to produce; to emit; as, flint and steel give sparks. 4. To communicate or announce, as advice, tidings, etc.; to pronounce; to render or utter, as an opinion, a judgment, a sentence, a shout, etc. 5. To grant power or license to; to permit; to allow; to license; to commission. It is given me once again to behold my friend. --Rowe. Then give thy friend to shed the sacred wine. --Pope. 6. To exhibit as a product or result; to produce; to show; as, the number of men, divided by the number of ships, gives four hundred to each ship. 7. To devote; to apply; used reflexively, to devote or apply one's self; as, the soldiers give themselves to plunder; also in this sense used very frequently in the past participle; as, the people are given to luxury and pleasure; the youth is given to study. 8. (Logic & Math.) To set forth as a known quantity or a known relation, or as a premise from which to reason; -- used principally in the passive form given. 9. To allow or admit by way of supposition. I give not heaven for lost. --Mlton. 10. To attribute; to assign; to adjudge. I don't wonder at people's giving him to me as a lover. --Sheridan. 11. To excite or cause to exist, as a sensation; as, to give offense; to give pleasure or pain. 12. To pledge; as, to give one's word. 13. To cause; to make; -- with the infinitive; as, to give one to understand, to know, etc. But there the duke was given to understand That in a gondola were seen together Lorenzo and his amorous Jessica. --Shak. To give away, to make over to another; to transfer. Whatsoever we employ in charitable uses during our lives, is given away from ourselves. --Atterbury. To give back, to return; to restore. --Atterbury. To give the bag, to cheat. [Obs.] I fear our ears have given us the bag. --J. Webster. To give birth to. (a) To bear or bring forth, as a child. (b) To originate; to give existence to, as an enterprise, idea. To give chase, to pursue. To give ear to. See under Ear. To give forth, to give out; to publish; to tell. --Hayward. To give ground. See under Ground, n. To give the hand, to pledge friendship or faith. To give the hand of, to espouse; to bestow in marriage. To give the head. See under Head, n. To give in. (a) To abate; to deduct. (b) To declare; to make known; to announce; to tender; as, to give in one's adhesion to a party. To give the lie to (a person), to tell (him) that he lies. To give line. See under Line. To give off, to emit, as steam, vapor, odor, etc. To give one's self away, to make an inconsiderate surrender of one's cause, an unintentional disclosure of one's purposes, or the like. [Colloq.] To give out. (a) To utter publicly; to report; to announce or declare. One that gives out himself Prince Florizel. --Shak. Give out you are of Epidamnum. --Shak. (b) To send out; to emit; to distribute; as, a substance gives out steam or odors. To give over. (a) To yield completely; to quit; to abandon. (b) To despair of. (c) To addict, resign, or apply (one's self). The Babylonians had given themselves over to all manner of vice. --Grew. To give place, to withdraw; to yield one's claim. To give points. (a) In games of skill, to equalize chances by conceding a certain advantage; to allow a handicap. (b) To give useful suggestions. [Colloq.] To give rein. See under Rein, n. To give the sack. Same as To give the bag. To give and take. (a) To average gains and losses. (b) To exchange freely, as blows, sarcasms, etc. To give time (Law), to accord extension or forbearance to a debtor. --Abbott. To give the time of day, to salute one with the compliment appropriate to the hour, as "good morning." "good evening", etc. To give tongue, in hunter's phrase, to bark; -- said of dogs. To give up. (a) To abandon; to surrender. "Don't give up the ship." He has . . . given up For certain drops of salt, your city Rome. --Shak. (b) To make public; to reveal. I'll not state them By giving up their characters. --Beau. & Fl. (c) (Used also reflexively.) To give up the ghost. See under Ghost. To give one's self up, to abandon hope; to despair; to surrender one's self. To give way. (a) To withdraw; to give place. (b) To yield to force or pressure; as, the scaffolding gave way. (c) (Naut.) To begin to row; or to row with increased energy. (d) (Stock Exchange). To depreciate or decline in value; as, railroad securities gave way two per cent. To give way together, to row in time; to keep stroke. Syn: To Give, Confer, Grant. Usage: To give is the generic word, embracing all the rest. To confer was originally used of persons in power, who gave permanent grants or privileges; as, to confer the order of knighthood; and hence it still denotes the giving of something which might have been withheld; as, to confer a favor. To grant is to give in answer to a petition or request, or to one who is in some way dependent or inferior.
Rein\ (r?n), n. [F. r[^e]ne, fr. (assumed) LL. retina, fr. L. retinere to hold back. See Retain.]1. The strap of a bridle, fastened to the curb or snaffle on each side, by which the rider or driver governs the horse. This knight laid hold upon his reyne. --Chaucer. 2. Hence, an instrument or means of curbing, restraining, or governing; government; restraint. "Let their eyes rove without rein." --Milton. To give rein, To give the rein to, to give license to; to leave withouut restrain. To take the reins, to take the guidance or government; to assume control.
Rein\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Reined (r?nd); p. pr. & vb. n. Reining.]1. To govern or direct with the reins; as, to rein a horse one way or another. He mounts and reins his horse. --Chapman. 2. To restrain; to control; to check. Being once chafed, he can not Be reined again to temperance. --Shak. To rein in or rein up, to check the speed of, or cause to stop, by drawing the reins.
Re*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Retained; p. pr. & vb. n. Retaining.] [F. retainir, L. retinere; pref. re- re- + tenere to hold, keep. See Tenable, and cf. Rein of a bridle, Retention, Retinue.]1. To continue to hold; to keep in possession; not to lose, part with, or dismiss; to retrain from departure, escape, or the like. "Thy shape invisibleretain." --Shak. Be obedient, and retain Unalterably firm his love entire. --Milton. An executor may retain a debt due to him from the testator. --Blackstone. 2. To keep in pay; to employ by a preliminary fee paid; to hire; to engage; as, to retain a counselor. A Benedictine convent has now retained the most learned father of their order to write in its defense. --Addison. 3. To restrain; to prevent. [Obs.] --Sir W. Temple. Retaining wall (Arch. & Engin.), a wall built to keep any movable backing, or a bank of sand or earth, in its place; -- called also retain wall. Syn: To keep; hold; retrain. See Keep.
![[P]](http://cache.lexico.com/g/d/premium_mh.gif){kind=small}
Audio Help [reyn] Pronunciation Key 
