Meaning and Use
The verb keep means to hold, maintain, or continue to have something. It is often used to describe the act of retaining possession, preserving a state, or continuing to do something over time. The past tense and past participle form of keep is kept.
Present and Past Forms
The base form is keep, used in the present tense and infinitive form. The past tense and past participle form is kept, which is irregular and does not follow the typical "-ed" ending rule.
Usage Examples
In the present tense, keep can be used as follows: "I keep my keys in my bag." For the past tense, kept is used: "She kept the letter for many years." These examples show retaining possession or continuing an action.
Conjugations
| English Pronoun | English Conjugation | Spanish Conjugation | English Example | Spanish Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | keep | mantengo | I keep my room clean. | Yo mantengo mi cuarto limpio. |
| You | keep | mantienes | You keep your promises. | Tú mantienes tus promesas. |
| He/She/It | keeps | mantiene | He keeps the secret. | Él mantiene el secreto. |
| We | keep | mantenemos | We keep our traditions alive. | Nosotros mantenemos nuestras tradiciones vivas. |
| They | keep | mantienen | They keep their options open. | Ellos mantienen sus opciones abiertas. |
| I/You/He/She/It/We/They (past) | kept | mantuve/mantuviste/mantuvo... | She kept the diary safe. | Ella mantuvo el diario seguro. |
Tips for Learners
Keep in mind keep is irregular, so its past form is kept, not keeped. It is often used with objects, habits, or rules. For example: "Keep quiet," or "Keep the change." It also appears in many idiomatic expressions such as "keep in touch" or "keep up."
