Keep Definition
- For an indefinitely long period:
gave the ring to me for keeps.
- Seriously and permanently:
We're separating for keeps.
- To watch over attentively; mind.
- To watch closely or carefully:
keep your eye on the ball.
- To be watchful.
- To be courageous or stoic in the face of adversity.
- To carry on a courtship:
a couple who kept company but never married.
- To socialize or associate:
keeps company with some tough thugs.
Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Keep
- for keeps
- keep an eye on
- keep an eye out
- keep a stiff upper lip
- keep company
- keep (one's) chin up
- keep (one's) eyes open
- keep (one's) nose clean
- keep pace
- keep (someone) company
- keep the wolf from the door
- keep time
- keep to (oneself)
- for keeps
- keep at
- keep in with
- keep to
- keep to oneself
- keep up
- keep up with
- keep up with the Joneses
Origin of Keep
-
From Middle English kepen (“to keep, guard, look after, watch”), from Old English cēpan (“to seize, hold, observe”), from Proto-Germanic *kōpijaną (compare West Frisian kypje ‘to look’), variant of *kapōną (compare Old English capian ‘to look’, Dutch kapen ‘to seize, snatch’, German gaffen ‘to gape’, Danish kope (“to gawk, stare”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵab-, *ǵāb- (“to look after”) (compare Lithuanian žẽbti ‘to eat reluctantly’, Russian забота (zabota) ‘care, worry’).
From Wiktionary
Middle English kepen from Old English cēpan to observe, seize
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
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