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Glite Dictionary
🔄 To continue 👥 To retain
to keep on

to keep on

24 2.2
Continue to have someone working for you
  • phrasal verb
  • /kip ɑn/
translation icon : mantener
  • He told me to keep on believing in myself even when times are tough.
  • just keep on
  • keep on going
  • keep on walking

And I, I'm just going to say Ivana Trump, the book she said that Trump kept on his bedside table with Mein Kampf.

Examples

  • You keep on trying!

    Malcolm & Marie (2021)

  • You tempt me, taunt me, hurt me, but I keep on loving you.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • And I want you to keep on doing that again and again and again.

  • So take it slow, try and then, you know, just try to keep on keeping your mind open to different things you can work on.

  • And I expect you to keep on doing the same.

    The Hard Corps (2005)

  • I used to think that this world would keep on getting better.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Ok, everybody, keep on your toes.

    Up Close & Personal (1996)

  • Henry, keep on with those buttons.

    Elevator (2013)

  • You just have to, you just have to like keep on doing you and keep on doing what you feel is right and keep on doing what makes you happy.

  • And we're going to keep on cranking away at it.

Synonyms

to keep
vsto keep on
∞ 1.0

To continue doing something or stay in the same state

allows a person or thing to remain in a role or be employed
to stick with
vsto keep on
341 3.6

Keep doing or supporting something even when it is difficult

is about allowing someone to remain in a role rather than personal commitment
to retain
vsto keep on
236 3.4

To keep having something such as a job or possession

focuses on allowing someone to remain in a role or be employed

Antonyms

to let go
852 3.8

To stop employing someone so they lose their job

to dismiss
70 3.3

To remove someone from their job

How Long

permanent
650 3.2
to keep on
24 2.2
to retain
236 3.4

Surface Forms

keep on infinitive
keeping on present participle
keeps on third person singular
kept on past
kept on past participle

Morphology

keep + on

The meaning 'to continue doing something' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'keep' (to continue/remain) with the particle 'on' (indicating ongoing duration). This verb + particle construction follows straightforward compositional patterns common in English and other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Keep on in the sense 'to allow someone or something to remain in a position or job' comes from the simple picture of keeping a worker on the team or on the payroll instead of letting them go. So, it means 'to continue to employ or keep someone in a role'.