Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Emotionally independent and not needing others: Describes a person who is calm, controlled, and does not rely on others for emotional support or validation.
   • Complete and independent in itself: Describes a thing, system, or unit that has all the necessary parts or functions within itself and does not require external connections or support to operate.

Examples of Usage

• Describing a person:

  • She is a very self-contained individual who enjoys her own company.
  • Despite the chaos, he remained perfectly self-contained and calm.

• Describing a thing or system:

  • The apartment is a self-contained unit with its own kitchen and bathroom.
  • The spacecraft must be a self-contained environment for the long journey.

Advanced Usage

• "self-contained community": a community that has all the facilities (e.g., shops, schools) it needs within its own area.

  • The military base is like a self-contained community.

• "self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)": a device used by firefighters that provides breathable air in an immediate dangerous atmosphere, carrying all its components.

  • Firefighters entered the building wearing self-contained breathing apparatus.

Variants and Related Words

• Self-containment (noun): The quality or state of being self-contained.
  • The design emphasizes self-containment and efficiency.

Synonyms

• Independent: Not influenced or controlled by others.
• Self-sufficient: Able to supply one's own needs.
• Self-possessed: Calm, confident, and in control of one's feelings.
• Autonomous: Having the freedom to govern itself or control its own affairs.

Antonyms

• Dependent: Needing someone or something else for support.
• Needy: Requiring a lot of emotional support.
• Interdependent: Mutually dependent on each other.

Related Phrases

• Self-contained flat/apartment: A residential unit that contains all its own facilities and has a private entrance, not shared with other units.

  • They rented a self-contained flat in the basement.

• Self-contained classroom: In education, a classroom where one teacher instructs the same group of students in all or most subjects, as opposed to students moving between specialist teachers.

  • Her child is in a self-contained classroom for gifted students.

Adjective

1. in full control of your faculties
   • the witness remained collected throughout the cross-examination
   • perfectly poised and sure of himself
   • more self-contained and more dependable than many of the early frontiersmen
   • strong and self-possessed in the face of trouble
2. constituting a complete and independent unit in and of itself
   • the university is like a self-contained city with shops and all amenities