maintenance

/'meintinəns/

Thân thiện

A technician performs routine maintenance on a large industrial machine.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • The act of keeping something in good condition or in existence: "Maintenance" refers to the work or actions needed to preserve something in its proper state or to continue its operation.
   • Financial support provided to a person, especially as required by law: "Maintenance" can mean the money that one person is legally obligated to pay to support another, such as a former spouse or child.
   • The process of sustaining life or providing necessities: "Maintenance" also denotes the provision of the means for survival, such as food and shelter.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • Regular maintenance of the equipment is essential for safety. (The routine care of the equipment is crucial.)
  • He pays monthly maintenance to his ex-wife. (He provides regular financial support as ordered by the court.)
  • Their main concern is the maintenance of their family. (Their primary worry is providing for their family's basic needs.)

Advanced Usage

• "Preventive maintenance": scheduled care to prevent future problems.
  • The factory follows a strict schedule of preventive maintenance.
• "Alimony/maintenance payments": court-ordered financial support after a divorce or separation.
  • The judge increased the maintenance payments.
• "Cost of maintenance": the ongoing expenses required to keep something functional.
  • The cost of maintenance for the old building is very high.

Variants and Related Words

• Maintain (verb): to keep in an existing state; to provide support for.
  • It is important to maintain a positive attitude.
• Maintainable (adjective): capable of being kept in good condition.
  • The software is no longer easily maintainable.

Synonyms

• Upkeep: the process of keeping something in good condition.
• Support: financial or material assistance.
• Sustenance: the maintaining of someone or something in life or existence.

Related Phrases

• Maintenance crew/team: a group of workers responsible for repairs and upkeep.
  • The maintenance team fixed the leak quickly.
• In maintenance: temporarily out of service for repairs or care.
  • The website is down as it is in maintenance.

Related Idioms

• "The maintenance of law and order": the preservation of peace and legal authority.
  • The police are responsible for the maintenance of law and order.
• "Maintenance of effort": the continuation of a consistent level of work or support.
  • The grant requires maintenance of effort from the local institution.

Học thuật

Noun

1. the unauthorized interference in a legal action by a person having no interest in it (as by helping one party with money or otherwise to continue the action) so as to obstruct justice or promote unnecessary litigation or unsettle the peace of the community
   • unlike champerty, criminal maintenance does not necessarily involve personal profit
2. the act of sustaining life by food or providing a means of subsistence
   • they were in want of sustenance
   • fishing was their main sustainment
3. court-ordered support paid by one spouse to another after they are separated
4. means of maintenance of a family or group
5. activity involved in maintaining something in good working order
   • he wrote the manual on car care

Từ đồng nghĩa

• criminal maintenance
• sustenance
• sustentation
• sustainment
• upkeep
• alimony
• care