tentatively-kept
|ten-ta-tive-ly-kept|
/ˈtɛntətɪvli kɛpt/
provisionally maintained
Etymology
'tentatively-kept' originates from the combination of 'tentative' and 'kept', where 'tentative' comes from Latin 'tentativus', meaning 'trying' or 'attempting', and 'kept' is the past participle of 'keep', from Old English 'cepan', meaning 'to seize' or 'to hold'.
'tentative' evolved from Latin 'tentativus' through Old French 'tentatif', and 'kept' evolved from Old English 'cepan', eventually forming the modern English compound 'tentatively-kept'.
Initially, 'tentative' meant 'trying' or 'attempting', and 'kept' meant 'to hold'. Together, they evolved to imply something maintained with uncertainty.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
kept or maintained in a tentative manner, often implying uncertainty or provisional status.
The project was tentatively-kept on hold until further notice.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/04/24 06:32