maintenance
Usage
What are other ways to say maintenance?
Generally, maintenance refers to care or upkeep, as of machinery or property. But sometimes, maintenance refers to what is spent for the living of another: to provide for the maintenance or support of someone. Maintenance occasionally refers to the allowance itself provided for livelihood: They are entitled to a maintenance from this estate. Living and livelihood (a somewhat more formal word), both refer to what one earns to keep (oneself) alive, but are seldom interchangeable within the same phrase: to earn one's living; to threaten one's livelihood. “To make a living” suggests making just enough to keep alive, and is particularly frequent in the negative: You cannot make a living out of that. “To make a livelihood out of something” suggests rather making a business of it: to make a livelihood out of knitting hats.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He also said Metrolink failed to ensure proper maintenance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Officials warn in the documents that the center "could be unable to make payroll or pay routine maintenance contracts" within weeks, the Post reported.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
Mice receiving the drug improved beyond their starting levels in exploratory behavior, spatial memory, and blood-sugar maintenance.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 12, 2026
The suit says Altus, owned by private-equity firm TPG, leased the building’s roof from Lineage to own and operate a solar-panel array, and that Altus hired Pearce to conduct maintenance on the panels.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
I followed, and we tucked ourselves into the tiny maintenance bay we’d used the last time we were almost caught by security.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Vocabulary lists containing maintenance
Freak the Mighty
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Declaration of the Rights of Woman (1791)
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Franklin D. Roosevelt, "A Date That Will Live In Infamy" (1941)
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