Definitions
- Describing something that is kept or preserved. - Referring to something that is held back or not released. - Talking about something that is still in possession or ownership.
- Referring to the act of keeping something in good condition or working order. - Describing the effort to preserve or uphold a particular standard or level. - Talking about the ongoing support or care for something or someone.
List of Similarities
- 1Both words involve the idea of keeping something.
- 2Both words can refer to physical objects or abstract concepts.
- 3Both words imply an ongoing effort or action.
- 4Both words suggest a sense of control or responsibility over something.
What is the difference?
- 1Focus: Retained emphasizes keeping something that is already in possession, while maintain focuses on preserving or upholding something.
- 2Scope: Retained is more limited in scope and refers to specific items or people, while maintain can be applied to a wider range of things.
- 3Timeframe: Retained suggests a past action that has been completed, while maintain implies an ongoing or future action.
- 4Connotation: Retained can have a neutral or positive connotation, while maintain can sometimes have a negative connotation if it implies a struggle or difficulty in keeping something up.
- 5Usage: Retained is less common than maintain in everyday language.
Remember this!
Retained and maintain are synonyms that both involve the idea of keeping something. However, retained emphasizes keeping something that is already in possession, while maintain focuses on preserving or upholding something. Additionally, retained is more limited in scope and suggests a past action, while maintain implies an ongoing or future action.
