1 keeping up | Definition of keeping up
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keep up

verb
kept up; keeping up; keeps up

Definition of keep 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 & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about keep up

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Synonyms & Antonyms for keep up

Synonyms

hold out, hold up, last, prevail, survive

Antonyms

fail, fizzle, give out, go out, peter (out), run out

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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

 Without the funding increase ICE can't keep up with apprehensions by Border Patrol. — Colleen Long, Fortune, "US Moves FEMA, Coast Guard Money to Fund Border Programs," 28 Aug. 2019 The Taliban have kept up a near-daily rate of deadly attacks, despite holding several rounds of talks with Khalilzad since his appointment almost a year ago. — Fox News, "Joint Chiefs of Staff chair on Afghanistan: 'Not using the 'withdraw' word right now'," 28 Aug. 2019 Brown has kept up the drama with Oakland in training camp. — Michael Shapiro, SI.com, "Ben Roethlisberger Regrets Criticism of Antonio Brown: 'It Ruined a Friendship'," 27 Aug. 2019 Child labor laws haven't kept up The No. 1 earner on YouTube last year was the 7-year-old star of the hit YouTube channel Ryan ToysReview. — Taylor Mooney, CBS News, "Companies make millions off kid influencers, and the law hasn't kept up," 26 Aug. 2019 These days, the Duke is still keeping up with his royal duties. — Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, "What to Know About the Duke of Gloucester, Queen Elizabeth's First Cousin," 26 Aug. 2019 Polyphony Digital has kept up a steady tempo of free DLC, adding new tracks and new cars. — Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, "The ten best console racing games of all time," 22 Aug. 2019 Ultimately, Leviz and crew couldn’t keep up with the high-flying South Korean and Russian teams who opened a massive score gap between themselves and everyone else. — Aron Garst, The Verge, "Illegal tournaments and rejected visas: Team Vietnam’s long road to the PUBG Nations Cup," 20 Aug. 2019 Instead, she's kept up with her daily routines like walking around NYC, and even found time to photograph some street art. — Marina Liao, Marie Claire, "Katie Holmes Wore Veja Sneakers While Walking Her Dogs With Suri," 20 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'keep up.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of keep up

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

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More from Merriam-Webster on keep up

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with keep up

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for keep up

Nglish: Translation of keep up for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of keep up for Arabic Speakers

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