1
as in celebrated
to mark with an appropriate practice, rite, or ceremony
keep the Sabbath by not working
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in retained
to continue to have in one's possession or power
the money is yours to keep keep my secret and don't tell it to anyone
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in fulfilled
to do what is required by the terms of
make sure you keep your promise to help out at the homeless shelter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
5
as in maintained
to pay the living expenses of
agreed to keep both of their children in off-campus housing until they graduated and found jobs
Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in managed
to look after and make decisions about
enlisted a relative to keep the store while she was away
Synonyms & Similar Words
7
as in contained
to keep from exceeding a desirable degree or level (as of expression)
try to keep your composure no matter what happens
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
8
as in protected
to drive danger or attack away from
may God bless and keep you
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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show current usage.
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Recent Examples of kept
The 2-year-old appears to have gotten out into the backyard and opened a kennel where two Rottweilers were being kept, allowing the dogs to get out and attack him, the Valdosta Police Department said in a statement.
—
Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 7 Oct. 2025
Arsenal kept the ball for another minute and quietened the home crowd to get a better feel for the game.
—Art De Roché, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
Just getting to 1-1 felt like a tremendous upset, considering that only a two-out, two-strike home run from Kerry Carpenter had kept the Tigers from a 2-0 deficit in the best-of-five series.
—Ryan Ford, Freep.com, 6 Oct. 2025
Programs that had kept them busy did not start back up.
—Jennifer Gonnerman, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2025
Their first win of the season came in week 3 against the New York Giants, and the Chiefs kept their win streak rolling the following week, squashing the Baltimore Ravens 37-20 at Arrowhead Stadium.
—Natasha Dye, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
After Cohoon died, her daughter, Linda Clifford, kept the tours alive by appointment.
—David Hudnall, Kansas City Star, 6 Oct. 2025
The surprisingly funny duo kept social media fans cracking up, but after about a year, their relationship quietly ended.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 29 Sep. 2025
For spring ’26, the designer kept the brand’s signature materials, wicker and rattan, at the forefront — mixing them with leather details on modern silhouettes like pointy-toe pumps or flat sandals.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2025
Jeanine Santucci, USA Today, 7 Oct. 2025
Arsenal kept the ball for another minute and quietened the home crowd to get a better feel for the game.
—Art De Roché, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
Just getting to 1-1 felt like a tremendous upset, considering that only a two-out, two-strike home run from Kerry Carpenter had kept the Tigers from a 2-0 deficit in the best-of-five series.
—Ryan Ford, Freep.com, 6 Oct. 2025
Programs that had kept them busy did not start back up.
—Jennifer Gonnerman, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2025
Their first win of the season came in week 3 against the New York Giants, and the Chiefs kept their win streak rolling the following week, squashing the Baltimore Ravens 37-20 at Arrowhead Stadium.
—Natasha Dye, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
After Cohoon died, her daughter, Linda Clifford, kept the tours alive by appointment.
—David Hudnall, Kansas City Star, 6 Oct. 2025
The surprisingly funny duo kept social media fans cracking up, but after about a year, their relationship quietly ended.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 29 Sep. 2025
For spring ’26, the designer kept the brand’s signature materials, wicker and rattan, at the forefront — mixing them with leather details on modern silhouettes like pointy-toe pumps or flat sandals.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kept
Verb
-
Endurance athlete Colin O'Brady, celebrated internationally in 2018 as the first person to traverse Antarctica solo and unassisted, is returning to the unforgiving continent for an even more arduous trek.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Earlier this month, Ripa celebrated her 25 seasons on Live, tying with Oprah Winfrey as TV's longest-running female daytime talk host.—
Brenton Blanchet,
PEOPLE,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Sébastien Lecornu resigned Monday after announcing a cabinet that largely retained the same ministers as under his unpopular predecessor, triggering a backlash.—
Ana Nicolaci da Costa,
CNN Money,
8 Oct. 2025
-
Like Renshaw, Harris was a backup on the last Ashes tour, albeit he was retained for all five Tests.—
Sam Dalling,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The Ten of Cups encourages breakthroughs in your social and professional relationships by feeling fulfilled first.—
Meghan Rose,
Glamour,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Hart stated that Hulk Hogan never fulfilled that traditional responsibility.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Cryptocurrency is stored in a digital wallet, which can be online, on a computer or on an external hard drive, according to the Federal Trade Commission.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
4 Oct. 2025
-
Food stored where exposed to splash, dust, or other contamination.—
Gege Reed,
Louisville Courier Journal,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
While the roads are well-maintained, the winding mountain sections require attentive driving, especially when leaf-peeping traffic increases.—
Taryn White,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Oct. 2025
-
Photograph Collection, which is maintained by University of Louisville Archives & Special Collections staff.—
Leo Bertucci,
Louisville Courier Journal,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Liverpool have not managed to string together two or three consecutive good performances.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
-
Meanwhile, 35 rooms at the Civic and other shelters that CoLEAD managed sat empty as of December 2024.—
Ashley Hiruko,
ProPublica,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
After the fire is fully contained, the next step is to control it.—
CA WILDFIRE BOT,
Sacbee.com,
8 Oct. 2025
-
The Palisades fire was fully contained on January 31, 2025, after burning for about 24 days.—
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
This ripper supports nearly every DVD format, including protected discs with CSS, region codes, and Sony ARccOS.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
5 Oct. 2025
-
That means the night skies in and around Capitol Reef are especially protected from star-obscuring light, so this playground of cliffs, arches, and canyons has some of the best stargazing in the country.—
Stephanie Vermillion,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kept.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kept. Accessed 10 Oct. 2025.
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