v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Kept p. pr. & vb. n. Keeping. ] [ OE. kēpen, AS. cēpan to keep, regard, desire, await, take, betake; cf. AS. copenere lover, OE. copnien to desire. ] 1. To care; to desire. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

I kepe not of armes for to yelp [ boast ]. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To hold; to restrain from departure or removal; not to let go of; to retain in one's power or possession; not to lose; to retain; to detain. [ 1913 Webster ]

If we lose the field,
We can not keep the town. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

That I may know what keeps me here with you. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

If we would weigh and keep in our minds what we are considering, that would instruct us. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To cause to remain in a given situation or condition; to maintain unchanged; to hold or preserve in any state or tenor. [ 1913 Webster ]

His loyalty he kept, his love, his zeal. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Keep a stiff rein, and move but gently on. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In this sense it is often used with prepositions and adverbs, as to keep away, to keep down, to keep from, to keep in, out, or off, etc. “To keep off impertinence and solicitation from his superior.” Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To have in custody; to have in some place for preservation; to take charge of. [ 1913 Webster ]

The crown of Stephanus, first king of Hungary, was always kept in the castle of Vicegrade. Knolles. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To preserve from danger, harm, or loss; to guard. [ 1913 Webster ]

Behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee. Gen. xxviii. 15. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. To preserve from discovery or publicity; not to communicate, reveal, or betray, as a secret. [ 1913 Webster ]

Great are thy virtues . . . though kept from man. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. To attend upon; to have the care of; to tend. [ 1913 Webster ]

And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden, to dress it and to keep it. Gen. ii. 15. [ 1913 Webster ]

In her girlish age, she kept sheep on the moor. Carew. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. To record transactions, accounts, or events in; as, to keep books, a journal, etc.; also, to enter (as accounts, records, etc. ) in a book. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. To maintain, as an establishment, institution, or the like; to conduct; to manage; as, to keep store. [ 1913 Webster ]

Like a pedant that keeps a school. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Every one of them kept house by himself. Hayward. [ 1913 Webster ]

10. To supply with necessaries of life; to entertain; as, to keep boarders. [ 1913 Webster ]

11. To have in one's service; to have and maintain, as an assistant, a servant, a mistress, a horse, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

I keep but three men and a boy. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

12. To have habitually in stock for sale. [ 1913 Webster ]

13. To continue in, as a course or mode of action; not to intermit or fall from; to hold to; to maintain; as, to keep silence; to keep one's word; to keep possession. [ 1913 Webster ]

Both day and night did we keep company. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

Within this portal as I kept my watch. Smollett. [ 1913 Webster ]

14. To observe; to adhere to; to fulfill; not to swerve from or violate; to practice or perform, as duty; not to neglect; to be faithful to. [ 1913 Webster ]

I have kept the faith. 2 Tim. iv. 7. [ 1913 Webster ]

Him whom to love is to obey, and keep
His great command. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

15. To confine one's self to; not to quit; to remain in; as, to keep one's house, room, bed, etc.; hence, to haunt; to frequent. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

'Tis hallowed ground;
Fairies, and fawns, and satyrs do it keep. J. Fletcher. [ 1913 Webster ]

16. To observe duly, as a festival, etc.; to celebrate; to solemnize; as, to keep a feast. [ 1913 Webster ]

I went with them to the house of God . . . with a multitude that kept holyday. Ps. xlii. 4. [ 1913 Webster ]

To keep at arm's length. See under Arm, n. --
To keep back. (a) To reserve; to withhold. “I will keep nothing back from you.” Jer. xlii. 4. (b) To restrain; to hold back. “Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins.” Ps. xix. 13. --
To keep company with. (a) To frequent the society of; to associate with; as, let youth keep company with the wise and good. (b) To accompany; to go with; as, to keep company with one on a voyage; also, to pay court to, or accept attentions from, with a view to marriage. [ Colloq. ] --
To keep counsel. See under Counsel, n. --
To keep down. (a) To hold in subjection; to restrain; to hinder. (b) (Fine Arts) To subdue in tint or tone, as a portion of a picture, so that the spectator's attention may not be diverted from the more important parts of the work. --
To keep good hours or
To keep bad hours, to be customarily early (or late) in returning home or in retiring to rest. --
To keep house. (a) To occupy a separate house or establishment, as with one's family, as distinguished from boarding; to manage domestic affairs. (b) (Eng. Bankrupt Law) To seclude one's self in one's house in order to evade the demands of creditors. --
To keep one's hand in, to keep in practice. --
To keep open house, to be hospitable. --
To keep the peace (Law), to avoid or to prevent a breach of the peace. --
To keep school, to govern, manage and instruct or teach a school, as a preceptor. --
To keep a stiff upper lip, to keep up one's courage. [ Slang ] --
To keep term. (a) (Eng. Universities) To reside during a term. (b) (Inns of Court) To eat a sufficient number of dinners in hall to make the term count for the purpose of being called to the bar. [ Eng. ] Mozley & W. --
To keep touch. See under Touch, n. --
To keep under, to hold in subjection; hence, to oppress. --
To keep up. (a) To maintain; to prevent from falling or diminution; as, to keep up the price of goods; to keep up one's credit. (b) To maintain; to continue; to prevent from ceasing. “In joy, that which keeps up the action is the desire to continue it.” Locke.

Syn. -- To retain; detain; reserve; preserve; hold; restrain; maintain; sustain; support; withhold. -- To Keep. Retain, Preserve. Keep is the generic term, and is often used where retain or preserve would too much restrict the meaning; as, to keep silence, etc. Retain denotes that we keep or hold things, as against influences which might deprive us of them, or reasons which might lead us to give them up; as, to retain vivacity in old age; to retain counsel in a lawsuit; to retain one's servant after a reverse of fortune. Preserve denotes that we keep a thing against agencies which might lead to its being destroyed or broken in upon; as, to preserve one's health; to preserve appearances. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act or office of keeping; custody; guard; care; heed; charge. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

Pan, thou god of shepherds all,
Which of our tender lambkins takest keep. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The state of being kept; hence, the resulting condition; case; as, to be in good keep. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. The means or provisions by which one is kept; maintenance; support; as, the keep of a horse. [ 1913 Webster ]

Grass equal to the keep of seven cows. Carlyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

I performed some services to the college in return for my keep. T. Hughes. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. That which keeps or protects; a stronghold; a fortress; a castle; specifically, the strongest and securest part of a castle, often used as a place of residence by the lord of the castle, especially during a siege; the dungeon. See Illust. of Castle. [ 1913 Webster ]

The prison strong,
Within whose keep the captive knights were laid. Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

The lower chambers of those gloomy keeps. Hallam. [ 1913 Webster ]

I think . . . the keep, or principal part of a castle, was so called because the lord and his domestic circle kept, abode, or lived there. M. A. Lower. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. That which is kept in charge; a charge. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Often he used of his keep
A sacrifice to bring. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Mach.) A cap for retaining anything, as a journal box, in place. [ 1913 Webster ]

To take keep, to take care; to heed. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. 1. To remain in any position or state; to continue; to abide; to stay; as, to keep at a distance; to keep aloft; to keep near; to keep in the house; to keep before or behind; to keep in favor; to keep out of company, or out reach. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To last; to endure; to remain unimpaired. [ 1913 Webster ]

If the malt be not thoroughly dried, the ale it makes will not keep. Mortimer. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To reside for a time; to lodge; to dwell. [ Now disused except locally or colloquially. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Knock at his study, where, they say, he keeps. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To take care; to be solicitous; to watch. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

Keep that the lusts choke not the word of God that is in us. Tyndale. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To be in session; as, school keeps to-day. [ Colloq. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

To keep from, to abstain or refrain from. --
To keep in with, to keep on good terms with; as, to keep in with an opponent. --
To keep on, to go forward; to proceed; to continue to advance. --
To keep to, to adhere strictly to; not to neglect or deviate from; as, to keep to old customs; to keep to a rule; to keep to one's word or promise. --
To keep up, to remain unsubdued; also, not to be confined to one's bed. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who, or that which, keeps; one who, or that which, holds or has possession of anything. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. One who retains in custody; one who has the care of a prison and the charge of prisoners. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. One who has the care, custody, or superintendence of anything; as, the keeper of a park, a pound, of sheep, of a gate, etc.; the keeper of attached property; hence, one who saves from harm; a defender; a preserver. [ 1913 Webster ]

The Lord is thy keeper. Ps. cxxi. 6. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. One who remains or keeps in a place or position. [ 1913 Webster ]

Discreet; chaste; keepers at home. Titus ii. 5. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. A ring, strap, clamp, or any device for holding an object in place; as: (a) The box on a door jamb into which the bolt of a lock protrudes, when shot. (b) A ring serving to keep another ring on the finger. (c) A loop near the buckle of a strap to receive the end of the strap. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. A fruit that keeps well; as, the Roxbury Russet is a good keeper. Hence: Anything perishable that remains in good condition longer than usual. Downing. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

7. An iron bar that is placed on the poles of a horseshoe magnet, and held in place there by the magnetic force, to preserve the strength of the magnet when not in use. [ PJC ]

Keeper of the forest (O. Eng. Law), an officer who had the principal government of all things relating to the forest. --
Keeper of the great seal, a high officer of state, who has custody of the great seal. The office is now united with that of lord chancellor. [ Eng. ] --
Keeper of the King's conscience, the lord chancellor; -- a name given when the chancellor was an ecclesiastic. [ Eng. ] --
Keeper of the privy seal (styled also lord privy seal), a high officer of state, through whose hands pass all charters, pardons, etc., before they come to the great seal. He is a privy councillor, and was formerly called clerk of the privy seal. [ Eng. ] --
Keeper of a magnet, a piece of iron which connects the two poles, for the purpose of keeping the magnetic power undiminished; an armature; called also keeper. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The office or position of a keeper. Carew. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. A holding; restraint; custody; guard; charge; care; preservation. [ 1913 Webster ]

His happiness is in his own keeping. South. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Maintenance; support; provision; feed; as, the cattle have good keeping. [ 1913 Webster ]

The work of many hands, which earns my keeping. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Conformity; congruity; harmony; consistency; as, these subjects are in keeping with each other; his levity is not in keeping with the seriousness of the occasion. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

4. (Paint.) Harmony or correspondence between the different parts of a work of art; as, the foreground of this painting is not in keeping. [ 1913 Webster ]

Keeping room, a family sitting room. [ New Eng. & Prov. Eng. ]

Syn. -- Care; guardianship; custody; possession. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Anything kept, or given to be kept, for the sake of the giver; a token of friendship. [ 1913 Webster ]