Maintain vs Help - What's the difference?
maintain | help |
(obsolete) To support (someone), to back up or assist (someone) in an action.
*:
*:And thenne he asked leue & wente oute of his heremytage for to mayntene his neuewe ageynst the myghty Erle / and so hit happed that this man that lyeth here dede dyd so moche by his wysedome and hardynes that the Erle was take and thre of his lordes by force of this dede man
To keep up; to preserve; to uphold (a state, condition etc.).
*, chapter=17
, title= *{{quote-news, year=2011, date=November 5, author=Phil Dawkes, work=BBC Sport
, title= *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-03, author=Nancy Langston, volume=101, issue=2, page=98
, magazine=(American Scientist)
, title= To declare or affirm (a clause) to be true; to assert.
* {{quote-news, year=2012, date=April 19, author=Josh Halliday, work=the Guardian
, title= (uncountable) Action given to provide assistance; aid.
(usually, uncountable) Something or someone which provides assistance with a task.
Documentation provided with computer software, etc. and accessed using the computer.
(usually, uncountable) One or more people employed to help in the maintenance of a house or the operation of a farm or enterprise.
(uncountable, euphemistic) Correction of deficits, as by psychological counseling or medication or social support or remedial training.
To provide assistance to (someone or something).
* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-22, volume=407, issue=8841, page=76, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= To contribute in some way to.
To provide assistance.
* {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
, chapter=19 * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-29, volume=407, issue=8842, page=72-3, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= To avoid; to prevent; to refrain from; to restrain (oneself). Usually used in nonassertive contexts with can .
As verbs the difference between maintain and help
is that maintain is (obsolete|transitive) to support (someone), to back up or assist (someone) in an action while help is to provide assistance to (someone or something).As a noun help is
(uncountable) action given to provide assistance; aid.maintain
English
Verb
(en verb)The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=This time was most dreadful for Lilian. Thrown on her own resources and almost penniless, she maintained herself and paid the rent of a wretched room near the hospital by working as a charwoman, sempstress, anything. In a moment she had dropped to the level of a casual labourer.}}
QPR 2-3 Man City, passage=Mancini's men were far from their best but dug in to earn a 10th win in 11 league games and an eighth successive victory in all competitions to maintain their five-point lead at the top of the table.}}
Mining the Boreal North, passage=Reindeer are well suited to the taiga’s frigid winters. They can maintain a thermogradient between body core and the environment of up to 100 degrees, in part because of insulation provided by their fur, and in part because of counter-current vascular heat exchange systems in their legs and nasal passages.}}
Free speech haven or lawless cesspool – can the internet be civilised?, passage=She maintains that the internet should face similar curbs to TV because young people are increasingly living online. "It's totally different, someone at Google watching the video from the comfort of their office in San Francisco to someone from a council house in London, where this video is happening right outside their front door."}}
Derived terms
* maintainabilityAntonyms
* (to keep up) abandonAnagrams
*help
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl), from (etyl) .Noun
(en-noun)- I need some help with my homework.
- He was a great help to me when I was moving house.
- I've printed out a list of math helps .
- I can't find anything in the help about rotating an image.
- The help is coming round this morning to clean.
- Most of the hired help is seasonal, for the harvest.
- His suicide attempts were a cry for help .
- He really needs help in handling customer complaints.
- ''"He's a real road-rager." / "Yup, he really needs help , maybe anger management."
Usage notes
The sense "people employed to help in the maintenance of a house" is usually an uncountable mass noun. A countable form - "a hired help''", "''two hired helps " - is attested, but now less common.Quotations
(English Citations of "help")Synonyms
* (action given to provide assistance) aid, assistance * (person or persons who provide assistance) * (person employed to help in the maintenance of a house)Derived terms
* cry for help * help desk * helpful * helpless * helpline * helply * helpmate * helpmeet * helpsome * home help * self-helpEtymology 2
From (etyl) helpen, from (etyl) . Cognate with (etyl) .Verb
Snakes and ladders, passage=Risk is everywhere.
citation, passage=As soon as Julia returned with a constable, Timothy, who was on the point of exhaustion, prepared to give over to him gratefully. The newcomer turned out to be a powerful youngster, fully trained and eager to help , and he stripped off his tunic at once.}}
A punch in the gut, passage=Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism.}}