kept

American  

[kept] / kɛpt /

verb

1. simple past tense and past participle of keep.

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adjective

1. having the expression of principles, ideas, etc., controlled, dominated, or determined by one whose money provides support.

   a kept press;

   a kept writer.

kept British  

/ kɛpt /

verb

1. the past tense and past participle of keep

2. pejorative a woman maintained by a man as his mistress

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Other Word Forms

• unkept
  adjective
• well-kept
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of kept

First recorded in 1670–80 kept for def. 2

Example Sentences

"Kept chipping away. Got some stops, made some shots and there it is."

From Barron's • Feb. 22, 2026

Appeared in the October 6, 2025, print edition as 'Starbucks Kept Cuts Under Wraps'.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 4, 2025

“We didn’t go rushing down the jetty. We didn’t go rushing to the back of the boat. We waited for her to come up. Kept it very civil,” he said.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 26, 2024

“Kept reaching out to more doctors. Kept on asking questions. No one had an answer to why I was still in pain. Finally got more images on what it was.”

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 15, 2023

Kept on telling me I owed her for uniforms and some old broken-down bed she give me.

From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison