maintenir

Inherited from Old French maintenir, from Vulgar Latin, Late Latin manūtenēre (“to support”), from Latin manū (“with the hand”) + teneō (“to hold”). Equivalent to main +‎ tenir. Compare Spanish mantener, Portuguese manter, Italian mantenere.

• IPA^(key): /mɛ̃t.niʁ/

• Audio:

  (file)

maintenir

1. to maintain
2. to stick to
3. (reflexive, se maintenir, of the weather) to stay fair
4. (reflexive, se maintenir) to persist
5. (reflexive, se maintenir) to keep up

This is a verb in a group of -ir verbs. All verbs ending in -tenir, such as contenir and détenir, are conjugated this way. Such verbs are the only verbs whose the past historic and subjunctive imperfect endings do not start in one of these thematic vowels (-a-, -i-, -u-).

• maintenant

• maintien

• “maintenir”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.

main +‎ tenir, calque of Latin manus teneō or from Vulgar Latin, Late Latin manūteneō, manūtenēre (“I support”).

maintenir

1. to maintain (to keep the same)

This verb conjugates as a third-group verb. This verb has a stressed present stem maintien distinct from the unstressed stem mainten, as well as other irregularities. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

• French: maintenir
  • → Romanian: menține
• → Middle English: mayntenen
  • English: maintain
    • → Cebuano: mintin, mintinar
• → Middle High German: hanthaben (calque)
  • German: handhaben
  • → Middle Dutch: hanthaven
    • Dutch: handhaven
      • Afrikaans: handhaaf