keep after

phrasal verb

kept after; keeping after; keeps after
1
informal : to tell (someone) again and again to do something
My kids kept after me to quit smoking, so I finally did.
I wasn't going to audition, but my friends kept after me.
2
US : to require (a student) to stay at school after classes have ended
The teacher kept him after (school) for misbehaving in class.

Examples of keep after in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web However, Israel does not want to keep the bulk of its military based in Gaza indefinitely, but rather to pull back and regularly reenter to keep after Hamas. Trudy Rubin, The Mercury News, 17 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'keep after.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“Keep after.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/keep%20after. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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