keep up

verb

kept up; keeping up; keeps up

transitive verb

: to persist or persevere in

kept up the good work

also : maintain, sustain

keep standards up

intransitive verb

1

: to keep adequately informed or up-to-date

keep up on international affairs

2

: to continue without interruption

rain kept up all night

3

: to maintain contact or relations with someone

keep up with old friends

Synonyms of keep up

• survive
• last
• prevail

Examples of keep up in a Sentence

let's hope that old air conditioner keeps up through this heat wave

kept the house up while the owners were gone

Recent Examples on the Web

Shoppers reported bread shelves were empty, but grocery store staff was working overtime to keep up with demand. —Brandon Truitt, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026

In a game where the ‘Hawks might try to slow things down with the running game, Stafford will come out guns blazing and dare Seattle to keep up. —Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 22 Jan. 2026

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? —Samira Asma-Sadeque, PEOPLE, 22 Jan. 2026

One of the best ways to do that is to keep up with the maintenance, Reisdorf said. —Eric D. Lawrence, USA Today, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for keep up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup

Kids Definition

keep up

verb

1

: maintain sense 1

keep standards up

2

: to stay well informed about something

keep up on the news

3

: to continue without interruption

rain kept up all night

4

: to stay even with others (as in a race)