keeping

noun

keep·​ing ˈkē-piŋ 

1

: conformity

in keeping with good taste

out of keeping with the decor

2

: the act of one that keeps: such as

a

: custody, maintenance

b

: observance

c

: a reserving or preserving for future use

3

a

: the means by which something is kept : support, provision

b

: the state of being kept or the condition in which something is kept

the house is in good keeping

Synonyms

• care
• custodianship
• custody
• guardianship
• safekeeping
• trust
• ward

Examples of keeping in a Sentence

put the house keys into a neighbor's secure keeping while they were on vacation

my aunt has all of our family's old photographs in her keeping

Recent Examples on the Web

Fort Knox has also held historical artifacts for other government agencies, including President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights during World War II for safe keeping. —Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2025

The hot holding unit should’ve kept food inside at or above 135 degrees for safe keeping. —David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 23 Feb. 2025

This is the wider context that makes our annual exercise spotlighting the arguments for keeping and trading each of the Canucks’ key pending unrestricted free agents so difficult. —Harman Dayal, The Athletic, 18 Feb. 2025

The audit, conducted by accounting firm Badawi & Associates, found that the city has fairly healthy record keeping practices. —Sierra Lopez, The Mercury News, 6 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing keeping

• how are you keeping
• in keeping with
• in someone's keeping
• keeping a watching brief
• keeping company with the likes of
• keeping room
• out of keeping with
• record-keeping
• what is keeping someone

Rhymes for keeping

• beeping
• creeping
• heaping
• leaping
• peeping
• reaping
• seeping
• sleeping
• steeping
• sweeping
• weeping
• beekeeping

Kids Definition

keeping

noun

keep·​ing

ˈkē-piŋ

1

: watchful attention : care

2

: a proper or fitting relationship : harmony

in keeping with good taste