Underkeep
noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 An underground reserve.
"The earth was swallowing Abascar. "The Underkeeps caved in.""
- 2 A keep or storage space located beneath the foundation of a structure; cellar.
"[...] located in the bottom of the driving-box cellars (underkeeps), a perforated plate being used between the axle and the cake of grease."
- 3 Any storage space or reservoir placed below another object.
"They have sliding underkeeps of ample oil capacity with pad lubrication and the underkeeps are supplied with oil direct from a mechanical lubricator."
- 4 An underkeeper, guardian, or custodian.
"[...] rooms taken up by Mr. Newton one of his Maᵗˢ Gent ushers for the placing of the Kings Maᵗˢ wardrobe stuffe for the space of three weeks at Newmarkett To Robert Ford underkeep of his Maᵗˢ House at Newmarkett in considracon of the want [...]"
- 1 To keep under or in subjection; subdue; suppress. transitive
"Like as a fire, the which in hollow caue / Hath long bene vnderkept, and downe supprest, / With murmurous disdaine doth inly raue […]"
- 2 To keep or maintain inadequately or below standard. transitive
"Compared to Colva and Benaulim, Palolem 's accommodations are overpriced and underkept — expect to pay Rs200 in season for the privilege of crashing in a charmless double and using a common bathroom outside."
Example
More examples"Like as a fire, the which in hollow caue / Hath long bene vnderkept, and downe supprest, / With murmurous disdaine doth inly raue […]"
Etymology
From under- + keep.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.