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.
“Cooling towers without a comprehensive water management program or lacking routine maintenance are associated with an increased risk for Legionella colonization,” the report said.
From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026
“I’m sure there will be maintenance involved,” Källenius.
From Barron's • May 18, 2026
Electric vehicles have a lower cost of ownership, both because of maintenance and because electricity in most markets is cheaper than the fuel equivalent.
From Barron's • May 15, 2026
Used EVs can save you a ton on fuel and maintenance, but they carry hidden costs.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026
Next to the culvert, a dusty maintenance yard ran all the way back into the shadows under the four-lane bridge.
From "Eleven" by Tom Rogers
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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