trattenersi

Trattenersi is an Italian verb that mainly functions as a reflexive verb meaning to refrain oneself or to hold back one’s impulses, emotions, or speech. In its non-reflexive form, the related transitive verb trattener e means to hold back something or someone else. As a reflexive verb, it often conveys self-control or restraint in everyday situations, from politeness to emotional control.

A common construction is trattenersi dal/ dal fare qualcosa, meaning to refrain from doing something. Examples include mi trattengo dal dire quello che penso (I refrain from saying what I think) and si è trattenuto dal ridere (he held back his laughter). In narrative or factual contexts, one can also use trattenere with a direct object to indicate restraining or detaining someone or something (for example, trattenere un sospetto or trattenere una persona).

Conjugation and usage notes: trattenersi is conjugated like other pronominal verbs and takes essere as the auxiliary in the passato prossimo, with the participle agreeing in gender and number with the subject: mi sono trattenuto, ti sei trattenuto, si è trattenuto/a, ci siamo trattenuti/e, vi siete trattenuti/e, si sono trattenuti/e. The present tense forms are mi tratto, ti tratti, si tratiene, ci trattieniamo, vi trattenete, si trattengono (informal note: many speakers use the standard reflexive forms: mi trattengo, ti trattieni, si trattiene, ci trattiene, etc.). The future uses the stem tratten-: mi tratterrò, ti tratterrai, si tratterrà, ci tratterremo, vi tratterrete, si tratterranno.

Etymology: the form derives from tenere with the prefix tra- or tracing back to the idea of “holding back.” Related verbs include trattenere (to hold back something or someone else) and contenere (to contain).