Definition Definition

keep - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'keep' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Keep [ n.]
- The act or office of keeping; custody; guard; care; heed; charge.
- The state of being kept; hence, the resulting condition; case; as, to be in good keep.
- The means or provisions by which one is kept; maintenance; support; as, the keep of a horse.
- That which keeps or protects; a stronghold; a fortress; a castle; specifically, the strongest and securest part of a castle, often used as a place of residence by the lord of the castle, especially during a siege; the donjon. See Illust. of Castle.
- That which is kept in charge; a charge.
- A cap for retaining anything, as a journal box, in place.
2 . Keep [ v. i.]
- To remain in any position or state; to continue; to abide; to stay; as, to keep at a distance; to keep aloft; to keep near; to keep in the house; to keep before or behind; to keep in favor; to keep out of company, or out reach.
- To last; to endure; to remain unimpaired.
- To reside for a time; to lodge; to dwell.
- To take care; to be solicitous; to watch.
- To be in session; as, school keeps to-day.
3 . Keep [ v. t.]
- To care; to desire.
- To hold; to restrain from departure or removal; not to let go of; to retain in one's power or possession; not to lose; to retain; to detain.
- To cause to remain in a given situation or condition; to maintain unchanged; to hold or preserve in any state or tenor.
- To have in custody; to have in some place for preservation; to take charge of.
- To preserve from danger, harm, or loss; to guard.
- To preserve from discovery or publicity; not to communicate, reveal, or betray, as a secret.
- To attend upon; to have the care of; to tend.
- To record transactions, accounts, or events in; as, to keep books, a journal, etc. ; also, to enter (as accounts, records, etc. ) in a book.
- To maintain, as an establishment, institution, or the like; to conduct; to manage; as, to keep store.
- To supply with necessaries of life; to entertain; as, to keep boarders.
- To have in one's service; to have and maintain, as an assistant, a servant, a mistress, a horse, etc.
- To have habitually in stock for sale.
- To continue in, as a course or mode of action; not to intermit or fall from; to hold to; to maintain; as, to keep silence; to keep one's word; to keep possession.
- To observe; to adhere to; to fulfill; not to swerve from or violate; to practice or perform, as duty; not to neglect; to be faithful to.
- To confine one's self to; not to quit; to remain in; as, to keep one's house, room, bed, etc. ; hence, to haunt; to frequent.
- To observe duty, as a festival, etc. ; to celebrate; to solemnize; as, to keep a feast.

Meaning of 'keep' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . keep [ n]
Meaning (1):
- the financial means whereby one lives
Example in sentence:
  • each child was expected to pay for their keep;
  • he applied to the state for support;
  • he could no longer earn his own livelihood
2 . keep [ v]
Meaning (2):
- retain possession of
Example in sentence:
  • Can I keep my old stuffed animals?;
  • She kept her maiden name after she married
Meaning (3):
- behave as expected during of holidays or rites
Example in sentence:
  • celebrate Christmas;
  • Keep the commandments;
  • Observe Yom Kippur
Meaning (4):
- supply with room and board
Example in sentence:
  • He is keeping three women in the guest cottage;
  • keep boarders
Meaning (5):
- raise
Example in sentence:
  • he keeps bees;
  • hoist a sail;
  • hoist the flags;
  • She keeps a few chickens in the yard;
  • The dog pricked up his ears;
  • up the ante
Meaning (6):
- look after; be the keeper of; have charge of
Example in sentence:
  • He keeps the shop when I am gone
Meaning (7):
- stop (someone or something) from doing something or being in a certain state
Example in sentence:
  • His snoring kept me from falling asleep;
  • Keep the child from eating the marbles;
  • We must prevent the cancer from spreading
Meaning (8):
- prevent the action or expression of
Example in sentence:
  • hold back your anger;
  • keep your cool;
  • she struggled to restrain her impatience at the delays
Meaning (9):
- cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., `keep clean'
Example in sentence:
  • hold in place;
  • She always held herself as a lady;
  • The students keep me on my toes
Meaning (10):
- have as a supply
Example in sentence:
  • I always keep batteries in the freezer;
  • keep food for a week in the pantry;
  • She keeps a sixpack and a week's worth of supplies in the refrigerator
Meaning (11):
- stick to correctly or closely
Example in sentence:
  • I cannot keep track of all my employees;
  • keep count;
  • The pianist kept time with the metronome
Meaning (12):
- maintain for use and service
Example in sentence:
  • I keep a car in the countryside;
  • She keeps an apartment in Paris for her shopping trips
Meaning (13):
- maintain by writing regular records
Example in sentence:
  • keep a diary;
  • keep notes;
  • maintain a record
Meaning (14):
- conform one's action or practice to
Example in sentence:
  • keep appointments;
  • she never keeps her promises;
  • We kept to the original conditions of the contract
Meaning (15):
- retain rights to
Example in sentence:
  • keep my job for me while I give birth;
  • keep my seat, please;
  • keep open the possibility of a merger
Meaning (16):
- continue a certain state, condition, or activity
Example in sentence:
  • Keep on working!;
  • Keep smiling;
  • We continued to work into the night;
  • We went on working until well past midnight
Meaning (17):
- prevent (food) from rotting
Example in sentence:
  • keep potatoes fresh;
  • preserved meats
Meaning (18):
- maintain in safety from injury, harm, or danger
Example in sentence:
  • May God keep you
Meaning (19):
- allow to remain in a place or position or maintain a property or feature
Example in sentence:
  • Our grant has run out and we cannot keep you on;
  • She retained her composure;
  • She retains a lawyer;
  • The family's fortune waned and they could not keep their household staff;
  • this garment retains its shape even after many washings;
  • We cannot continue several servants any longer;
  • We kept the work going as long as we could
Meaning (20):
- supply with necessities and support
Example in sentence:
  • She alone sustained her family;
  • The money will sustain our good cause;
  • There's little to earn and many to keep
Meaning (21):
- hold and prevent from leaving
Example in sentence:
  • The student was kept after school
Meaning (22):
- fail to spoil or rot
Example in sentence:
  • These potatoes keep for a long time
Meaning (23):
- store or keep customarily
Example in sentence:
  • Where do you keep your gardening tools?

Nearby Words:

kee keech keel keelage keeled keeler keelfat keelhaul keelhauled keelhauling

See 'keep' also in:

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