Dictionary

maintenance en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈmeɪnt(ə)nəns/
• (US) audio

Etymology

From Middle English mayntenaunce, from Old French maintenance, from maintenir, from Latin manus tenēre (“to hold in the hand”). By surface analysis, maintain + -ance. Note that maintain has undergone a sound and spelling change, hence is spelt with -tain-, rather than the -ten- still found in maintenance.

Meanings

1. (uncountable, usually) Actions performed to keep some machine or system functioning or in service.
   • They are all preventable by proper maintenance, but non-safety critical maintenance has to be evaluated, so failures are an accepted penalty for keeping maintenance costs down. 2019 October, Ian Walmsley, “Cleaning up”, in Modern Railways, page 42:
2. (uncountable, usually) A tort and (in some jurisdictions) an offence committed when a third party who does not have a bona fide interest in a lawsuit provides help or acquires an interest to a litigant's lawsuit.
3. (UK, uncountable, usually) Alimony, a periodical payment or a lump sum made or ordered to be made to a spouse after a divorce.
4. (uncountable, usually) Child support.
5. (uncountable, usually) Money required or spent to provide for the needs of a person or a family.
   • From Pond to Pond he roamed, from moor to moor; / Housing, with God's good help, by choice or chance: / And in this way he gained an honest maintenance. 1815 [1802], William Wordsworth, Resolution and Independence:
6. (uncountable, usually) The natural process which keeps an organism alive.
7. (Philippines, abbreviation, alt-of, colloquial, ellipsis, uncountable, usually) Ellipsis of maintenance medicine.
   alt of maintenance medicine
8. (attributive, uncountable, usually) Software updates that fix bugs and improve stability rather than adding new features.
   • a maintenance release; a maintenance version

Forms

Deriveds

data maintenance · cap of maintenance · automaintenance · maintenance medicine · maintenance hole · maintenance margin · undermaintenance · premaintenance · low-maintenance · facilities maintenance · maintenance-free · percussive maintenance · health maintenance organization · maintenance window · high-maintenance · separate maintenance · nonmaintenance · facility maintenance · postmaintenance · preventative maintenance · telemaintenance

Translations (90)

de Unterhalt (money to provide for the means of living) · pt manutenção (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · pt mantimento (process of keeping an organism alive) · fr entretien (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · yue 助訟 /助讼 (tort) · la tuitiō (money to provide for the means of living) · cmn 保養 /保养 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · gd gleidheadh (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · cmn 保守 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · tl panataman (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · da forsvar (tort) · nl onderhoud (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ja 維持 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · fr maintenance (process of keeping an organism alive) · fi elintoimintojen ylläpito (process of keeping an organism alive) · sk údržba (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · nl handhaving (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · uk утри́мання (money to provide for the means of living) · uk підтри́мка (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · gl mantemento (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ckb خزمەت (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · sh održávanje (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ka ტექნიკური მომსახურება (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · sh одржа́вање (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · es manutención (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · mi moni oranga (money to provide for the means of living) · da vedligeholdelse (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · pl konserwacja (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · is viðhald (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · sk obsluha (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · hi रख-रखाव (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · la tuitiō (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ru обслу́живание (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · bg поддръ́жка (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · fr maintenance (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · da service (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · az qulluq (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · eo bontenado (process of keeping an organism alive) · es mantenimiento (process of keeping an organism alive) · th การบำรุงรักษา (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · fi kunnossapito (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ru содержа́ние (money to provide for the means of living) · cmn 維持 /维持 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · mr डागडुजी (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ca manteniment (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · tg нигоҳдорӣ (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · hu karbantartás (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ja メンテナンス (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · bg издръ́жка (money to provide for the means of living) · nb vedlikehold (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · uk до́гляд (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ga coinneáil (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · it mantenimento (process of keeping an organism alive) · fi elantokustannukset (money to provide for the means of living) · ms penyenggaraan (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · it manutenzione (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · eo bontenado (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · id pemeliharaan (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · cs údržba (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ko 보존 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · cmn 助訟 /助讼 (tort) · hu szerviz (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · hy սպասարկում (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · id perawatan (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ru подде́ржка (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · fa-ira نِگَهْداری (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ar صِيَانَة (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · de Instandhaltung (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · pl utrzymanie (money to provide for the means of living) · vi bảo dưỡng (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · vi bảo trì (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · mk одржување (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · da hævdelse (tort) · cs obsluha (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · uk ремо́нт (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ru ремо́нт (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · sw matengenezo (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · es mantenimiento (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · de Wartung (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ko 유지 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · mr देखरेख (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · uk обслуго́вування (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · nn vedlikehald (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · tr bakım (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · gd cumail suas (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ml പരിപാലനം (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · et hooldus (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · sv underhåll (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ja 保守 (keeping a machine or system in service — see also care) · ru подде́ржка (money to provide for the means of living)