maintain
Use Maintain in a sentence
verb (used with object)
1.
to keep in existence or continuance; preserve; retain: to maintain good relations with neighboring countries.
2.
to keep in an appropriate condition, operation, or force; keep unimpaired: to maintain order; to maintain public highways.
3.
to keep in a specified state, position, etc.: to maintain a correct posture; to maintain good health.
4.
to affirm; assert; declare: He maintained that the country was going downhill.
5.
to support in speech or argument, as a statement or proposition.
Origin:
1200–50; Middle English mainteinen < Old French maintenir ≪ Medieval Latin manūtenēre, Latin manū tenēre literally, to hold in hand, equivalent to manū, ablative of manus hand (see manual) + tenēre to hold (see tenet)
1200–50; Middle English mainteinen < Old French maintenir ≪ Medieval Latin manūtenēre, Latin manū tenēre literally, to hold in hand, equivalent to manū, ablative of manus hand (see manual) + tenēre to hold (see tenet)
Related forms
main·tain·a·ble, adjective
main·tain·a·bil·i·ty, noun
main·tain·er, noun
pre·main·tain, verb (used with object)
self-main·tained, adjective
self-main·tain·ing, adjective
un·der·main·tain, verb (used with object)
un·der·main·tained, adjective
un·main·tain·a·ble, adjective
un·main·tained, adjective
well-main·tained, adjective
Synonyms
1. continue. 1, 2. keep up. 4. asseverate. Maintain, assert, aver, allege, hold, state all mean to express an opinion, judgment, or position. Maintain carries the implications of both firmness and persistence in declaring or supporting a conviction: She maintained her client's innocence even in the face of damaging evidence. Assert suggests assurance, confidence, and sometimes aggressiveness in the effort to persuade others to agree with or accept one's position: He asserted again and again the government's right to control the waterway. Aver like assert implies confident declaration and sometimes suggests a firmly positive or peremptory tone; in legal use aver means “to allege as fact”: to aver that the evidence is incontrovertible. Allege indicates a statement without evidence to support it, and thus can imply doubt as to the validity or accuracy of an assertion: The official is alleged to have been unaware of the crime. Hold means simply to have or express a conviction or belief: We hold these truths to be self-evident; She held that her rights had been violated. State usually suggests a declaration that is forthright and unambiguous: He stated his reasons in clear, simple language. 5. uphold, defend, vindicate, justify. 7. See support.
1. continue. 1, 2. keep up. 4. asseverate. Maintain, assert, aver, allege, hold, state all mean to express an opinion, judgment, or position. Maintain carries the implications of both firmness and persistence in declaring or supporting a conviction: She maintained her client's innocence even in the face of damaging evidence. Assert suggests assurance, confidence, and sometimes aggressiveness in the effort to persuade others to agree with or accept one's position: He asserted again and again the government's right to control the waterway. Aver like assert implies confident declaration and sometimes suggests a firmly positive or peremptory tone; in legal use aver means “to allege as fact”: to aver that the evidence is incontrovertible. Allege indicates a statement without evidence to support it, and thus can imply doubt as to the validity or accuracy of an assertion: The official is alleged to have been unaware of the crime. Hold means simply to have or express a conviction or belief: We hold these truths to be self-evident; She held that her rights had been violated. State usually suggests a declaration that is forthright and unambiguous: He stated his reasons in clear, simple language. 5. uphold, defend, vindicate, justify. 7. See support.
Antonyms
1. discontinue. 5. contradict.
1. discontinue. 5. contradict.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
|
Link To maintain
00:10
Maintain
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is absquatulate. Does it mean:
| to flee; abscond: |
| to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
maintain (meɪnˈteɪn) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | to continue or retain; keep in existence |
| 2. | to keep in proper or good condition: to maintain a building |
| 3. | to support a style of living: the money maintained us for a month |
| 4. | (takes a clause as object) to state or assert: he maintained that Talbot was wrong |
| 5. | to defend against contradiction; uphold: she maintained her innocence |
| 6. | to defend against physical attack |
| [C13: from Old French maintenir, ultimately from Latin manū tenēre to hold in the hand] | |
| main'tainable | |
| —adj | |
| main'tainer | |
| —n | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
maintain
mid-13c., "to practice habitually," from Anglo-Fr. meintenir (O.Fr. maintenir), from L. manu tenere "hold in the hand," from manu, abl. of manus "hand" (see manual) + tenere "to hold" (see tenet). Meaning "to carry on, keep up" is from mid-14c.;
that of "to keep oneself, to support" is from late 14c. Sense of "to defend in speech" is from mid-14c. Related: Maintained; maintaining; maintains.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
It must be costly to create and maintain such intricate dino creations, though.
But to maintain its performance over the next decade it needs to boost both domestic spending and its services sector.
Establish and maintain an externally funded research program.
They struggled in stressful situations, often had trouble paying attention, and found it difficult to maintain friendships.
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