keep back . delay 延迟

I am sorry we were late；we started in good time，but heavy rain on the road kept us back．对不起，我们来晚了。我们虽然准点起程，可一路上大雨耽搁了我们赶路。

 keep back . not tell；conceal 隐瞒

We must not keep back anything we know．不应该隐瞒我们所知道的事。

He is keeping something back from us．他对我们有所隐瞒。

I'll keep back nothing from you．我对你一切都不隐瞒。

The doctor recommended that the exact nature of the woman's illness should be kept back from her．医生建议不要让那个妇女知道她所患疾病的确切性质。

 keep back . withhold 扣留

National Insurance keeps back five percent of my wages．国家保险公司扣除我工资的百分之五。

They are keeping back the names of the victims．他们扣压着受害者的名单。

 keep back . reserve；save 保留；留出

The factory keeps back some money every year for welfare purposes．这个工厂每年留出一部分钱用于福利事业。

 keep back . hinder 妨碍

I don't want to keep you back from your work．我不想妨碍你的工作。

I hope I'm not keeping you back．我希望没有妨碍你。

keep bad hours . be habitually late in returning home or in retiring to rest 晚睡晚起；晚归晚睡；生活无规律

He keeps bad hours．He is rarely home until past midnight．他生活无规律，常常在午夜后才回家睡觉。

keep behind . make somebody remain after others are gone 留下

Jane was late home because she was kept behind at school to finish some work．简回家迟了，因为她被留在学校完成功课。

 keep body and soul together . keep alive；survive 活下去

They had hardly enough food to keep body and soul together．他们没有足够食物来维持生活。

John was unemployed most of the year and hardly made enough money to keep body and soul together．约翰一年中大部分时间失业，他赚的钱简直不够维持生活。

When he was out of work，he could hardly keep body and soul together．他失业时，几乎无法养活自己。

keep clear of . avoid 避开；不接触

You should keep clear of that fellow．你应当避开那家伙。

You should keep clear of spirits in the tropics．在热带地区，你不能饮酒。

When you are in a tropical country，keep clear of insects which may be carrying dangerous diseases．在热带国家，要避开那些可能携带危险疾病的昆虫。

 keep company . associate with 和…交往

See that you do not keep company with undesirable characters．注意不要和不良分子交朋友。

A person may be known by the company he keeps．看他交往的人，就可以知道他是什么样的人。

He advised me not to keep bad company．他劝我不要与坏人交往。

You should not keep company with such people．你不应该和这类人交往。

 keep company . stay or go with somebody so that he will not be lonely陪伴

I'm glad to keep you company．我 很高兴和你作伴。

I'll keep you company as far as the end of the lane．我可以一直陪你走到巷子的尽头。

John kept Andy company while his parents went to the movies．安迪双亲去看电影时，约翰就与他作伴。

He stayed at home to keep his wife company．他留在家里陪伴太太。

keep cool . remain calm 保持镇静

The soldier's courage was partly due to his ability to keep cool in the face of danger．这个士兵有勇气，部分原因是他能临危不惧。

keep dark . keep secret保密

We want to know the truth，but he kept dark about it ．我们想要知道实情，可是他却守口如瓶。

Peter told me when he was to be married，and I promised to keep it dark．彼得告诉我他结婚的时间，我答应为他保密。

keep down . remain at a lower level 处于低水平

Most of the food shops have promised to keep prices down until after the new year．大多数食品店答应新年之后才涨价。

keep down . not vomit；retain in the stomach 不呕吐；留在胃里

Jane is sick again today；she hasn't been able to keep her food down．简今天又生病了，吃下的东西都吐了出来。

keep down . control 控制；抑制

I could hardly keep my temper down when I saw the boys treating my dog badly．当我看见那些男孩待我的狗不好时，简直按捺不住愤怒。

The children could not keep their voices down．孩子们不能控制他们的声音。

You should try to keep down your anger．你应该尽量克制自己的脾气。

The firemen kept the fire down with hoses．消防队员用水龙管压住了火势。

keep down . keep with limits；limit 限制

She is managing to keep down her daily expenses so she could save more money．她设法紧缩日常开支，以便能积攒更多的钱。

We should keep down the soaring prices．我们应控制物价的飞涨。

We should take measures to keep down nonproductive expenses．我们应采取措施削减非生产性开支。

keep down . keep from progressing or growing；prevent from increasing 阻止…前进、生长、增多

We hoe the garden to keep down the weeds．我们锄花园里的地以免杂草丛生。

He has found out a new way to keep down weeds in paddy fields．他们找到了一种控制稻田杂草的新方法。

Chemicals are used for keeping insects down．用化学药品灭虫。

keep down . oppress 镇压

The police were ordered to keep down the riot．警察奉命镇压暴动。

The government intends to keep down the revolutionaries．政府企图镇压革命者。

The peasants were kept down initially but finally they staged an uprising．农民们起初被压服了，但最后还是举行了起义。