Definition

1. Verb (transitive):

   • To prevent someone from sleeping: To cause someone to remain awake, especially at night.
   • To maintain or continue something at the same level or standard: To sustain an activity, effort, or condition without allowing it to decline or stop.
   • To preserve or sustain something in good condition: To protect or maintain the state or existence of something.

2. Verb (intransitive):

   • To continue at the same pace or level as someone or something else: To match the speed, progress, or standard of another, so as not to fall behind.
   • To stay informed or current: To remain knowledgeable about developments or news regarding a particular subject.

Examples of Usage

• Verb (transitive):

  • The loud noise from the party kept the neighbors up.
  • She kept up a cheerful appearance despite the bad news.
  • It's difficult to keep up this old house without regular repairs.

• Verb (intransitive):

  • He walked so fast I could hardly keep up.
  • I try to keep up with the latest technological trends.

Advanced Usage

• "to keep up appearances": To maintain an outward show of prosperity, happiness, or propriety, especially to hide the true situation.

  • After losing his job, he struggled to keep up appearances for the sake of his family.

• "to keep up with the Joneses": To try to match the lifestyle, purchases, or social status of one's neighbors or peers, often leading to competitive spending.

  • They bought a new car just to keep up with the Joneses.

Variants and Related Words

• Upkeep (n): The process or cost of keeping something in good condition.
  • The upkeep of a large garden can be expensive.

Synonyms

• Maintain: To cause something to continue in a certain state.
• Sustain: To strengthen or support physically or mentally; to cause to continue for an extended period.
• Preserve: To maintain something in its original or existing state.
• Match: To be equal to something in quality or pace.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Keep up with: To stay level or informed about someone or something.
  • You need to read the industry reports to keep up with new developments.

Related Idioms

• Keep your chin up: Remain cheerful in a difficult situation.
  • I know you're disappointed, but keep your chin up.
• Keep your end up: To fulfill one's part of an agreement or responsibility.
  • We've done our work, so we expect you to keep your end up.

Verb

1. prevent from going to bed at night
   • The anticipation of the trip kept the children up all night
   • I kept myself up all night studying for the exam
2. keep informed
   • He kept up on his country's foreign policies
3. keep in safety and protect from harm, decay, loss, or destruction
   • We preserve these archeological findings
   • The old lady could not keep up the building
   • children must be taught to conserve our national heritage
   • The museum curator conserved the ancient manuscripts
4. lengthen or extend in duration or space
   • We sustained the diplomatic negotiations as long as possible
   • prolong the treatment of the patient
   • keep up the good work
5. maintain a required pace or level
   • He could not keep up and dropped out of the race