Definitions and Examples of maintain, preserve, keep
Learn when and how to use these words with these examples!
To keep something in its original state or condition.
Example
He had to maintain the old house to prevent it from falling apart.
To keep something in its original state or condition, especially to protect it from damage or decay.
Example
The museum's job is to preserve the artifacts for future generations.
To maintain something in its original state or condition.
Example
She had to keep the cake in the fridge to prevent it from spoiling.
Key Differences: maintain vs preserve vs keep
- 1Maintain implies keeping something in its original state or condition, without any change.
- 2Preserve implies keeping something in its original state or condition, especially to protect it from damage or decay.
- 3Keep implies maintaining something in its original state or condition.
Effective Usage of maintain, preserve, keep
- 1In Cooking: Use preserve to refer to methods of keeping food fresh for longer periods of time.
- 2In Maintenance: Use maintain to refer to keeping machines or equipment in good working order.
- 3In Everyday Life: Use keep to refer to maintaining something in its original state or condition.
Remember this!
The antonyms have distinct nuances: Maintain implies keeping something in its original state or condition, preserve implies keeping something in its original state or condition, especially to protect it from damage or decay, and keep implies maintaining something in its original state or condition. Use these words in different contexts such as cooking, maintenance, and everyday life to convey the idea of keeping something in its original state or condition.
