Can I say "keep watching" instead of "keep watch" here?
Native speaker’s answer
Rebecca
Excellent question. "Keep watch" is an idiom. It means to observe with continuous attention, especially as an act of protection, which is what the police officer is doing here. To "keep watching" means to continue watching/looking at something, for example, a movie. Ex: The bird keeps watch over her eggs. Ex: Do you want to keep watching this?