How to Use maintain in a Sentence

maintain

verb
  • The pilot was struggling to maintain control of the aircraft.
  • He has found it difficult to maintain a healthy weight.
  • It was obvious that the house had been poorly maintained.
  • She was finding it hard to maintain her balance.
  • The police say that they will do whatever is necessary to maintain law and order.
  • The company has done a poor job of maintaining its computer network.
  • It's difficult to maintain a correspondence when we're both so busy.
  • She still maintains a close relationship with her college roommate.
  • They have always maintained high standards of professional conduct.
  • No one said the heart of the home was easy to maintain!
    Jessica Cherner, House Beautiful, 28 Apr. 2023
  • He’s maintained the same group of friends and added some more.
    Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 12 Aug. 2024
  • But the British southpaw will have to maintain that for all 12 rounds.
    Troy L. Smith, cleveland, 8 May 2021
  • Some years back, the roads running through it were closed due to the city’s lack of funds to maintain them.
    Hartford Courant, 8 Dec. 2022
  • The unions maintained that a 30-year plan puts pension funds at greater risk over the long run.
    Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press, 26 June 2023
  • To have curly hair means having to maintain it, and that's not an easy task.
    Larry Stansbury, Peoplemag, 31 Oct. 2022
  • Keep the soil moist, maintain a light mulch and check the soil acidity.
    Tom MacCubbin, orlandosentinel.com, 6 Mar. 2021
  • But to do that, Democrats will need to maintain all of their current 47 seats and gain four more.
    Jenny Singer, Glamour, 28 Oct. 2020
  • Honing steels help to maintain the edge of a knife rather than sharpen the blade.
    Laura Denby, Peoplemag, 10 Oct. 2023
  • The long-term plan is to maintain the park as a passive space for the neighborhood.
    Mike Jones, Arkansas Online, 17 Dec. 2022
  • On the cusp of the final, Hudson was able to maintain perspective about the freak event.
    Anna Lazarus Caplan, Peoplemag, 25 Aug. 2023
  • The win maintains the Orioles’ standing as the best team in the American League with a 56-32 record.
    Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 6 July 2024
  • On the least healthy bushes, maintain foliage and deadhead just the bloom.
    Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Sep. 2020
  • To maintain peace, the groups trade young children, and their rivals raise them as their own.
    Gary Levin, USA TODAY, 24 Sep. 2020
  • Such fly-by-wire design should make the Volar simpler to fly and maintain.
    J. George Gorant, Robb Report, 4 Jan. 2022
  • The stakes are high for the Democrats and their uphill battle to maintain control of the Senate.
    Lucas E. Wright, USA TODAY, 8 May 2024
  • This ensured that the hair would maintain its body throughout the entire day and night.
    Jenna Rosenstein, Harper's BAZAAR, 17 Oct. 2017
  • The state does not maintain a list of free testing sites, Minnick said.
    Alison Steinbach, The Arizona Republic, 9 July 2020
  • The Fever couldn’t maintain their lead, however, as the Aces went on a 7-0 run to take a commanding lead at the end of the game.
    Indystar Sports, The Indianapolis Star, 27 June 2023
  • The announcement comes as state leaders have maintained their commitment to clean air initiatives amid President-elect Trump’s campaign promise to cut electric vehicle tax credits.
    Colleen Shalby, Los Angeles Times, 29 Nov. 2024
  • Silk extracts, squalane, and glycerin maintain moisture for hours, while indigo and oatmeal mitigate redness and irritation.
    Annie Blackman, Allure, 29 Nov. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'maintain.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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