maintain
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to keep in existence or continuance; preserve; retain.
to maintain good relations with neighboring countries.
- Antonyms:
- discontinue
-
to keep in an appropriate condition, operation, or force; keep unimpaired.
to maintain order; to maintain public highways.
- Synonyms:
- keep up
-
to keep in a specified state, position, etc..
to maintain a correct posture; to maintain good health.
-
He maintained that the country was going downhill.
- Synonyms:
- asseverate
-
to support in speech or argument, as a statement or proposition.
- Antonyms:
- contradict
-
to keep or hold against attack.
to maintain one's ground.
-
to provide for the upkeep or support of; carry the expenses of.
to maintain a family.
-
to sustain or support.
not enough water to maintain life.
verb
-
to continue or retain; keep in existence
-
to keep in proper or good condition
to maintain a building
-
to support a style of living
the money maintained us for a month
-
(takes a clause as object) to state or assert
he maintained that Talbot was wrong
-
to defend against contradiction; uphold
she maintained her innocence
-
to defend against physical attack
Usage
What are other ways to say maintain? To maintain something is to keep it in existence, or to preserve it. How does maintain compare to the synonyms support, sustain, and uphold? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Related Words
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.
Other Word Forms
- maintainability noun
- maintainable adjective
- maintainer noun
- premaintain verb (used with object)
- self-maintained adjective
- self-maintaining adjective
- undermaintain verb (used with object)
- undermaintained adjective
- unmaintainable adjective
- unmaintained adjective
- well-maintained adjective
Etymology
Origin of maintain
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English mainteinen from Old French maintenir, ultimately from Medieval Latin manūtenēre, Latin manū tenēre literally, “to hold in hand,” equivalent to manū, ablative of manus “hand” + tenēre “to hold”; manual, tenet
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They beseeched the leaders to “take all possible steps to maintain wildlife movement across the international border.”
From Los Angeles Times
How long Djokovic could maintain this level was the next question.
From BBC
The 30-year-old designer says she wants to maintain this pride in traditional tartan but with a fashionable, ready-to-wear approach.
From BBC
Edwards said that stripping Andrew of his titles allows has allowed the former prince to maintain that he has no money and no ability to provide compensation, and to "allow these women to just suffer".
From BBC
Tyson has prepared and implemented contingency, hiring and retention plans as needed to maintain its workforce and operations, according to the spokesperson.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
