Desert and keep are opposites of loyalty. To desert is to walk out on a post, duty, or person you were bound to — a betrayal that leaves them unguarded (desert your post, desert a friend). To keep is to hold to something and stay faithful to it, never setting it down (keep your post, keep a promise). One slips away from the bond; the other holds to it.
These two pull opposite ways on a bond. Desert, from Latin deserere ('to un-join'), breaks the tie and slips away — the post left open, the trust betrayed. Keep, from Old English cēpan ('to hold, observe'), is the opposite: you stay with the thing, hold it close, and never set it down. Where desert abandons the post in the night, keep stands by it. Desert breaks faith; keep holds it — to keep a vow is to stay true to it.
desert
To desert someone or something is to leave a post or bond you were duty-bound to keep — and the doing of it is a betrayal. It comes from Latin deserere, 'to un-join' (de- plus serere, 'to link'), so the word breaks a tie that was holding. Soldiers desert their posts, a parent deserts a family, supporters desert a failing cause. Where to abandon can be neutral and to forsake is sorrowful, desert carries blame: there was a duty with a claim on you, and you slipped out from under it.
keep
To keep something is to go on having it — the plainest, widest word for not letting go. It comes from Old English cēpan, 'to seize, hold, observe', and it has kept that open reach: you keep a promise, a secret, a seat, a pet, your temper. Unlike retain, which holds on deliberately against the chance of loss, keep can be effortless and ordinary. Its true opposite is to abandon — to set a thing down and walk away from it for good.
| desert | keep | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | to walk out on a post or bond — a betrayal | to hold to something; to stay faithful to it |
| The bond | broken, slipped away from | held, stayed with |
| Charge | betrayal; the post left open | loyalty; the thing held close |
| Often with | desert your post, the army, a friend, a cause | keep your post, a promise, faith, a vow |
| Direction | break away | hold fast |
| Example | He deserted the cause when it faltered. | She kept faith with the cause to the end. |
They are opposites of loyalty — break the bond or hold to it. Desert is the sentry slipping through the wire, the post left open and betrayed (desert your post, desert a friend). Keep is the hands folded around the light, never setting it down — staying with the thing, holding faith (keep your post, keep a promise). If you break away from a bond you were bound to, you desert it; if you hold to it, you keep it.
desert
- iThe mercenaries deserted the moment the pay stopped.
- iiHe felt his allies had deserted him at the crucial vote.
- iiiYou don't desert a friend in trouble.
keep
- iShe kept her post through the whole long night.
- iiHe kept faith with the people who trusted him.
- iiiThey kept their promise despite the cost.
They are opposites for a duty or bond: desert breaks it and slips away, keep holds to it. Note the shared object — you can desert a post or keep a post — but desert leaves it betrayed and open, while keep stays with it and holds it.