maintain

maintain
maintainable, adj.maintainability, n.maintainer, n.
/mayn tayn"/, v.t.
1. to keep in existence or continuance; preserve; retain: to maintain good relations with neighboring countries.
2. to keep in an appropriate condition, operation, or force; keep unimpaired: to maintain order; to maintain public highways.
3. to keep in a specified state, position, etc.: to maintain a correct posture; to maintain good health.
4. to affirm; assert; declare: He maintained that the country was going downhill.
5. to support in speech or argument, as a statement or proposition.
6. to keep or hold against attack: to maintain one's ground.
7. to provide for the upkeep or support of; carry the expenses of: to maintain a family.
8. to sustain or support: not enough water to maintain life.
[1200-50; ME mainteinen < OF maintenir ML manutenere, L manu tenere lit., to hold in hand, equiv. to manu, abl. of manus hand (see MANUAL) + tenere to hold (see TENET)]
Syn. 1. continue. 1, 2. keep up. 4. asseverate. MAINTAIN, ASSERT, AVER, ALLEGE, HOLD, STATE all mean to express an opinion, judgment, or position. MAINTAIN carries the implications of both firmness and persistence in declaring or supporting a conviction: She maintained her client's innocence even in the face of damaging evidence.
ASSERT suggests assurance, confidence, and sometimes aggressiveness in the effort to persuade others to agree with or accept one's position: He asserted again and again the government's right to control the waterway. AVER, like ASSERT, implies confident declaration and sometimes suggests a firmly positive or peremptory tone; in legal use AVER means "to allege as fact": to aver that the evidence is incontrovertible.
ALLEGE indicates a statement without evidence to support it, and thus can imply doubt as to the validity or accuracy of an assertion: The official is alleged to have been unaware of the crime. HOLD means simply to have or express a conviction or belief: We hold these truths to be self-evident; She held that her rights had been violated. STATE usually suggests a declaration that is forthright and unambiguous: He stated his reasons in clear, simple language. 5. uphold, defend, vindicate, justify. 7. See support.
Ant. 1. discontinue. 5. contradict.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Maintain — Main*tain, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Maintained}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Maintaining}.] [OE. maintenen, F. maintenir, properly, to hold by the hand; main hand (L. manus) + F. tenir to hold (L. tenere). See {Manual}, and Tenable.] 1. To hold or keep in any… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • maintain — main‧tain [meɪnˈteɪn, mən ] verb [transitive] 1. to make something continue in the same way or at the same high standard as before: • It is impossible to maintain exports at past levels. • To maintain sales growth, the company plans to unveil a… …   Financial and business terms

  • maintain — maintain, assert, defend, vindicate, justify are comparable when they mean to uphold as true, right, just, valid, or worthy of notice or acceptance in the face of opposition or indifference. Maintain implies a firmness of conviction. When this… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • maintain — I (carry on) verb adfirmare, confirmare, contendere, continue, follow up, go on, keep alive, keep going, keep on, keep up, perpetuate, persevere, persist, proceed with, prolong, pursue, shore up, stick to II (commence) verb activate, b …   Law dictionary

  • maintain — [mān tān′] vt. [ME mainteinen < OFr maintenir < ML manutenere < L manu tenere, to hold in the hand < manu, abl. of manus, hand + tenere, to hold: see MANUAL & TENANT] 1. to keep or keep up; continue in or with; carry on 2. a) to keep… …   English World dictionary

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  • maintain — [v1] care for, keep up advance, carry on, conserve, continue, control, cultivate, finance, go on with, guard, keep, keep going, look after, manage, nurture, perpetuate, persevere, preserve, prolong, protect, provide, renew, repair, retain, save,… …   New thesaurus

  • maintain — (v.) mid 13c., to practice habitually, from Anglo Fr. meintenir (O.Fr. maintenir, 12c.) keep (a wife), sustain; persevere in, practice continually, from L. manu tenere hold in the hand, from manu, ablative of manus hand (see MANUAL (Cf. manual))… …   Etymology dictionary

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  • maintain — 01. Tian Hsu works hard to [maintain] close friendships with the students she studied with in London. 02. The roads haven t been properly [maintained], and now are full of cracks and potholes. 03. The President always [maintained] that he didn t… …   Grammatical examples in English

  • maintain — [[t]meɪnte͟ɪn[/t]] ♦♦ maintains, maintaining, maintained 1) VERB If you maintain something, you continue to have it, and do not let it stop or grow weaker. [V n] The Department maintains many close contacts with the chemical industry... [V n]… …   English dictionary

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