Dictionary Definition
keep
Noun
1 the financial means whereby one lives; "each
child was expected to pay for their keep"; "he applied to the state
for support"; "he could no longer earn his own livelihood" [syn:
support, livelihood, living, bread and
butter, sustenance]
3 a cell in a jail or prison [syn: hold]
Verb
1 keep in a certain state, position, or activity;
e.g., "keep clean"; "hold in place"; "She always held herself as a
lady"; "The students keep me on my toes" [syn: maintain, hold]
2 continue a certain state, condition, or
activity; "Keep on working!"; "We continued to work into the
night"; "Keep smiling"; "We went on working until well past
midnight" [syn: continue, go on, proceed, go along] [ant:
discontinue]
3 retain possession of; "Can I keep my old
stuffed animals?"; "She kept her maiden name after she married"
[syn: hold
on] [ant: lose]
4 prevent from doing something or being in a
certain state; "We must prevent the cancer from spreading"; "His
snoring kept me from falling asleep"; "Keep the child from eating
the marbles" [syn: prevent] [ant: let]
5 conform one's action or practice to; "keep
appointments"; "she never keeps her promises"; "We kept to the
original conditions of the contract" [syn: observe]
6 observe correctly or closely; "The pianist kept
time with the metronome"; "keep count"; "I cannot keep track of all
my employees" [syn: observe, maintain]
7 look after; be the keeper of; have charge of;
"He keeps the shop when I am gone"
8 maintain by writing regular records; "keep a
diary"; "maintain a record"; "keep notes" [syn: maintain]
9 supply with room and board; "He is keeping
three women in the guest cottage"; "keep boarders"
10 allow to remain in a place or position; "We
cannot continue several servants any longer"; "She retains a
lawyer"; "The family's fortune waned and they could not keep their
household staff"; "Our grant has run out and we cannot keep you
on"; "We kept the work going as long as we could" [syn: retain, continue, keep on, keep
going]
11 supply with necessities and support; "She
alone sustained her family"; "The money will sustain our good
cause"; "There's little to earn and many to keep" [syn: sustain, maintain]
12 fail to spoil or rot; "These potatoes keep for
a long time" [syn: stay
fresh]
13 celebrate, as of holidays or rites; "Keep the
commandments"; "celebrate Christmas"; "Observe Yom Kippur" [syn:
observe, celebrate]
14 keep under control; keep in check; "suppress a
smile"; "Keep your temper"; "keep your cool" [syn: restrain, suppress, keep back,
hold
back]
15 maintain in safety from injury, harm, or
danger; "May God keep you" [syn: preserve]
16 raise; "She keeps a few chickens in the yard";
"he keeps bees"
17 retain rights to; "keep my job for me while I
give birth"; "keep my seat, please"; "keep open the possibility of
a merger" [syn: keep open,
hold
open, save]
18 store or keep customarily; "Where do you keep
your gardening tools?"
19 have as a supply; "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"
20 maintain for use and service; "I keep a car in
the countryside"; "She keeps an apartment in Paris for her shopping
trips" [syn: maintain]
21 hold and prevent from leaving; "The student
was kept after school"
22 prevent (food) from rotting; "preserved
meats"; "keep potatoes fresh" [syn: preserve] [also: kept]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Etymology
cepanVerb
- To maintain
possession of.
- I keep a small stock of painkillers for emergencies.
- To maintain the
condition of.
- I keep my specimens under glass to protect them.
- transitive archaic
To remain in, to be
confined to.
- 1605, William
Shakespeare, King Lear, III.ii,
- The wrathful skies
- Gallow the very wanderers of the dark
- And make them keep their caves.
- Gallow the very wanderers of the dark
- The wrathful skies
- 1605, William
Shakespeare, King Lear, III.ii,
- To restrain.
- I keep my brother out of trouble by keeping him away from his friends and hard at work.
- To continue.
- I keep taking the tablets, but to no avail.
- In the context of "intransitive|cricket": To act as wicket-keeper.
- Godfrey Evans kept for England for many years.
- transitive of livestock
to raise; to care for
- 1914, Robert Joos, Success with Hens, Forbes & company,
page 217:
- Of course boys are boys and need watching, but there is little watching necessary when they keep chickens.''
- 1914, Robert Joos, Success with Hens, Forbes & company,
page 217:
Synonyms
- sense maintain possession of retain
- sense maintain the condition of preserve, protect
Derived terms
lookfrom keep- keep-away
- keep around
- keep at
- keep away
- keep back
- keep down
- keep faith
- keep fit
- keep from
- keep going
- keep in mind
- keep in touch
- keep it down
- keep it on the barber pole
- keep it real
- keep it up
- keep mum
- keep off
- keep on
- keep on truckin'
- keep one's cards close to one's chest
- keep one's eye on the ball
- keep one's eyes peeled
- keep one's head
- keep one's lips sealed
- keep one on one's toes
- keep oneself to oneself
- keep out
- keep out of
- keep quiet
- keep shtum
- keep somebody in stitches
- keep somebody posted
- keep someone in the loop
- keep straight
- keep tabs on
- keep the wolf from the door
- keep track
- keep up
- keep up with
- keep wicket
- keep with
- keep your pecker up
- keep your hair on
- keep your shirt on
- keepalive
- keepie-uppie/keepy-uppy
- keepnet
- keepsake
Related terms
Translations
to maintain possession of
- Chinese: 保持 (bǎochí)
- Finnish: pitää
- French: garder
- German: behalten
- Russian: хранить
- Spanish: guardar
- Swedish: hålla, behålla
- West Frisian: hâlde
to maintain the condition of; to preserve
- Finnish: pitää], [[säilyttää]
- German: bewahren
- Russian: хранить
- Spanish: guardar
- Swedish: bevara
to remain in, to be confined to
- Finnish: pysyä
- Spanish: permanecer
to restrain
- German: heraushalten, fernhalten
to continue
- Czech: pokračovat
- Finnish: jatkaa, tehdä jotakin jatkuvasti
- German: weiterhin, weiter
- Russian: продолжать/продолжить (prodolžátat’/prodólžit’)
- Spanish: seguir, continuar
- Swedish: fortsätta
to act as wicket-keeper
of livestock: to raise; to care for
- Spanish: criar
- ttbc Dutch: houden
- ttbc Estonian: hoidma (1), säilitama (2)
- ttbc Ido: retenar
- ttbc Indonesian: jaga, menjaga, menjagai
- ttbc Italian: tenere, stare
- ttbc Japanese: 保つ (たもつ, tamotsu), 確保する (かくほする, kakuho-suru)
- ttbc Persian: (negâh dâštan)
- ttbc Portuguese: manter
- ttbc Romanian: ţine
- ttbc Slovene: obdržati (1), vzdrževati (2)
- ttbc Telugu: ఉంచు (uMchu), పెట్టు (peTTu)
Noun
Translations
main tower
- Finnish: keskustorni
- German: Burgfried
- Spanish: torre del homenaje
support
- Finnish: elanto
- German: Lebensunterhalt
See also
Estonian
Middle English
- note
- take keep — “take note”
- Chaucer, G.P. 503-4:
- And shame it is, if a preest take keep
- A shiten shepherde and a clene sheep
- And shame it is, if a preest take keep
Extensive Definition
As nobles became more interested in grand halls
and comfortable living quarters, the keep lost its domestic role.
Although keeps continued to be used and built, there is evidence
that many had a reduced role, demonstrated by the lack of
residential amenities in the tower plans, such as latrines and
chimneys.
In Western Europe, however, the defensible
residential keep experienced a resurgence before the end of the
medieval period, as towers were built to house nobles and their
retinues securely, but at a very high level of comfort and luxury
(e.g. Raglan
Castle,
Ashby de la Zouch Castle, Chateau
de Vincennes, and
Château de Largoët). This luxurious type was particularly
popular in late medieval Scotland up until
the 1600s
(e.g. Craigievar
Castle). Another word for this type of keep is the tower
house.
Notable types
Norman or Romanesque keep
An archetypical form for the keep in the British Isles is the Norman keep, so-called because they were built throughout England and Ireland by Norman nobles. Norman keeps usually have several distinguishing features in common and the type was very popular during the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Most have towers at each corner, which usually extend above the main keep to form watchtowers. In many cases spiral staircases were contained in or near these corner towers. Another common feature was the forebuilding, which contained the entryway to the keep, its most vulnerable point. This structure extended from the side of the keep and often, was approached by stairs, as the entryway usually was above ground level. Sometimes a drawbridge guarded the top of the stairs. One of the most famous keeps in Europe is the White Tower of The Tower of London, constructed by William the Conqueror in the aftermath of the Norman Conquest.The cylindrical donjon of Rouen, shown above,
is all that remains of the large city fortress where Joan of Arc
was imprisoned during her trial for heresy.
Shown to the right is the tallest keep remaining
in existence, the donjon of Château
de Vincennes, which is located in a suburb of contemporary
Paris.
Previously this distinction was held the donjon of Coucy
in Picardy.
References
See also
- Castle architecture
- Medieval architecture
- Japanese castle buildings for tenshaku, the Japanese castle keep
keep in Belarusian: Данжон
keep in Belarusian (Tarashkevitsa): Данжон
keep in Bulgarian: Донжон
keep in Catalan: Donjon
keep in Czech: Donjon
keep in Danish: Donjon
keep in German: Donjon
keep in Spanish: Torre del homenaje
keep in French: Donjon
keep in Italian: Maschio (architettura)
keep in Hebrew: מגדל עוז (ביצור)
keep in Lithuanian: Donžonas
keep in Hungarian: Öregtorony
keep in Dutch: Donjon
keep in Japanese: ダンジョン
keep in Polish: Stołp
keep in Portuguese: Torre de menagem
keep in Russian: Донжон
keep in Swedish: Kärntorn
keep in Ukrainian: Донжон
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
POW camp, TLC, abide, abide by, abstain, accede to, accommodate, accommodation, accommodations, accumulate, acknowledge, acropolis, act up to, adhere
to, administer Communion, afford, afford support, agree to,
aliment, alimentation, alimony, amass, arm, armor, arrest, attend Communion, attend
Mass, attend to, attend to orders, backlog, balance, ballast, bastille, bastion, be faithful to,
beachhead, bear, bear in mind, bear out, bear
up, beat the drum, bed, bed
and board, bide, bit, black hole, bless, block, blockhouse, blow the trumpet,
board, board and room,
bolster, bolster up,
borstal, borstal
institution, bosom, bottle
up, box up, bread, bread
and butter, breed,
bridewell, bridgehead, bridle, brig, brood over, bunker, buttress, cage, camouflage, can, care, care for, carry, carry on, castle, celebrate, celebrate Mass,
cell, champion, charge, check, cherish, citadel, cling to, clink, clip, cloak, cloister, clothe, collect, commemorate, communicate, compass about,
comply, comply with,
conceal, concentration
camp, condemned cell, conduct, confine, conform, conform to, consecrate, conserve, constrain, contain, continue, continue to be,
control, cool, cool off, cooler, coop, coop in, coop up, copyright, cork up, counterbalance, cover, crib, crutch, culture, cumulate, curb, curtail, cushion, custodianship, custody, daily bread, death
cell, death house, death row, decelerate, defeat time,
defend, defer to, defy
time, deny, detain, detention camp, deter, direct, disallow, discourage, do justice to,
dompt, donate, donjon, dress ship, dungeon, dwell, dwell on, dwell upon,
economic support, embosom, embrace, encage, enclose, endow, endowment, endure, enjoin, enjoy, ensure, entertain, exist, extend, facilities, fan the embers,
farm, fasthold, fastness, fatten, federal prison, feed, fence, fence in, fend, fill, fill up, finance, find, fire a salute, firm, firm up, follow, follow the book, fondle, food, forbear, forbid, forced-labor camp,
fort, fortress, foster, freeze, fulfill, fund, furnish, gaol, garner, garner up, garrison, garrison house,
gather into barns, give,
give support, go on, govern, grow, guarantee, guard, guardhouse, guarding, hallow, hang on to, harbor, harken to, hatch, have, have and hold, have in mind,
haven, heap up, heed, hem in, hide, hinder, hoard, hoard up, hold, hold at bay, hold back, hold
by, hold down, hold fast, hold in, hold in check, hold in custody,
hold in leash, hold in mind, hold in restraint, hold jubilee, hold
on, hold on to, hold out, hold up, honor, house of correction, house
of detention, hug, husband, immobilize, immure, impound, imprison, incarcerate, industrial
school, inhibit,
insure, internment camp,
invest, jail, jailhouse, jubilate, jubilize, jug, keep alive, keep back, keep by
one, keep dark, keep faith with, keep from, keep from harm, keep
going, keep in, keep in check, keep in custody, keep in detention,
keep in memory, keep in mind, keep in reserve, keep in store, keep
in view, keep intact, keep inviolate, keep on, keep on hand, keep
out, keep safe, keep the faith, keep under control, keep up,
keeping, labor camp,
last, last long, last out,
laud, lay by, lay under
restraint, lay up, lend support, lengthen, listen to, live, live on, live through, live
up to, livelihood,
living, lock in, lockup, lodgings, look after, maffick, maintain, maintenance, make available,
make good, make merry, make provision for, make safe, manage, manna, mark, martello, martello tower,
mask, maximum-security
prison, meat, meet, memorialize, mew, mew up, mind, minimum-security prison,
mote, mothering, motte, muzzle, nail down, nestle, not destroy, not
endanger, not expend, not use up, not waste, nourish, nourishment, nurse, nurture, nutriment, obey, obey the rules, observe, obstruct, operate, ordain, oubliette, own, pabulum, pap, patent, pay attention to,
peel, peel tower, pen, pen up, penal colony, penal
institution, penal settlement, penitentiary, perdure, perennate, perpetuate, persist, persist in, pile up,
pillbox, pin down,
pokey, police, possess, post, pound, praise, prepare, present, preserve, prevail, prevent, preventive custody,
price support, prison,
prison camp, prisonhouse, prohibit, prolong, prop, prop up, protect, protection, protective
custody, protract,
provide, provide for,
provision, pull, pull in, put apart, put
aside, put away, put by, put up, rail in, raise, ranch, rath, rear, receive the Sacrament,
recruit, refection, reform school,
reformatory,
refreshment,
regard, register, rein, rein in, reinforce, remain, replenish, repress, reserve, respect, restrain, restrict, retain, retard, retrench, ride shotgun for,
run, run on, safeguard, safehold, safekeeping, sanctify, satisfy, save, save up, screen, seal up, secrete, secure, set apart, set aside, set
back, set by, shackle,
shelter, shield, shore, shore up, shroud, shut in, shut up,
signalize, slow down,
smother, snub, solemnize, solemnly mark,
sound a fanfare, spare,
sponging house, squirrel, squirrel away,
stabilitate,
stabilize, stand, stand up, state prison,
stay, stay in line, stay
on, steady, stick, stifle, stir, stock, stock up, stockade, stockpile, store, store up, stow away,
straiten, strong point,
stronghold, submit, subsidization, subsidize, subsidy, subsist, subsistence, subvention, subventionize, supply, support, suppress, survive, sustain, sustainment, sustenance, sustentation, take orders,
tarry, tend, tender loving care, the hole,
tide over, toe the line, tollbooth, tower, tower of strength, training
school, transfix,
treasure, treasure up,
undergird, underwrite, upbear, uphold, upkeep, victual, wall in, ward, watch over, wear, wear well, withhold, yield