Phrasal verb
keep in
Definition
phrasal verb. to make someone stay inside a place, usually as a punishment or for safety.
phrasal verb. to detain someone within a building or room; frequently used in educational contexts regarding detention or in medical contexts regarding patient confinement.
Examples
“The teacher kept the students in after school.”
“Because of the heavy rain, the coach decided to keep the players in for a theory session.”
“The hospital staff decided to keep the patient in for observation to ensure no further complications arose from the surgery.”
Examples
simple
“The teacher kept the students in after school.”
contextual
“Because of the heavy rain, the coach decided to keep the players in for a theory session.”
complex
“The hospital staff decided to keep the patient in for observation to ensure no further complications arose from the surgery.”
Usage
usually takes a person as the object; often implies a lack of choice for the person being kept.
Teaching tip
contrast with 'keep out' (preventing entry); in a school context, 'keep in' is the standard term for the act of giving a student detention.
Pitfall
The teacher kept in the students.
The teacher kept the students in.
while technically possible, when the object is a person, it almost always goes between 'keep' and 'in'.
Phrasal verb
Particles
in
Separability
optional
Pattern
keep + object + in
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/keep-in