kept

1. keep in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g.,Examples: "keep clean"; "hold in place"; "She always held herself as a lady"Synonyms: hold, keep, maintain

2. continue a certain state, condition, or activityExamples: "Keep on working!"; "We continued to work into the night"; "Keep smiling"Synonyms: continue, go along, go on, keep, proceedAntonyms: discontinue

3. retain possession ofExamples: "Can I keep my old stuffed animals?"; "She kept her maiden name after she married"Synonyms: hold on, keepAntonyms: lose

4. stop (someone or something) from doing something or being in a certain stateExamples: "We must prevent the cancer from spreading"; "His snoring kept me from falling asleep"; "Keep the child from eating the marbles"Synonyms: keep, preventAntonyms: let

5. conform one's action or practice toExamples: "keep appointments"; "she never keeps her promises"; "We kept to the original conditions of the contract"Synonyms: keep, observeAntonyms: break

6. stick to correctly or closelyExamples: "The pianist kept time with the metronome"; "keep count"; "I cannot keep track of all my employees"Synonyms: keep, maintain, observe