保 bǎo — to defend; to protect; to insure or guarantee; to maintain; hold or keep; to guard
多喝水可以保护嗓子。Duō hē shuǐ kě yǐ bǎo hù sǎng zi.Drinking more water can protect your throat.
Common words: 保护 (bǎo hù)、保证 (bǎo zhèng)、保持 (bǎo chí)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "keep"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "keep", including 保 (bǎo), 存 (cún), 养 (yǎng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "keep" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 保 (bǎo), 存 (cún), 养 (yǎng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span bǎo, cún, yǎng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 保 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 保 bǎoto defend; to protect; to insure or guarantee; to maintain; hold or keep; to guardUseful words: 保护, 保证
- 存 cúnexist; deposit; store; keep; surviveUseful words: 存在, 生存
- 养 yǎnggive birth; keep (pets); to support; to bring sb. up; to raise (pig; etc.)Useful words: 营养, 培养
Common words for these 3 "keep" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 保 (bǎo) — so "keep" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
保护bǎo hùto protect; to defend; to safeguard; protection保证bǎo zhèngguarantee; to guarantee; to ensure; to safeguard保持bǎo chíto keep; to maintain; to hold; to preserve存在cún zàito exist; to be; existence生存shēng cúnto exist; to survive保存bǎo cúnto conserve; to preserve; to keep; to store营养yíng yǎngnutrition; nourishment培养péi yǎngto cultivate; to breed; to foster; to nurture养成yǎng chéngto cultivate; to raise; to form (a habit); to acquire
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "keep".
存 cún — exist; deposit; store; keep; survive
我去银行存钱。Wǒ qù yín háng cún qián.I went to the bank to deposit money.
Common words: 存在 (cún zài)、生存 (shēng cún)、保存 (bǎo cún)
养 yǎng — give birth; keep (pets); to support; to bring sb. up; to raise (pig; etc.)
他在家里养了一只小猫。Tā zài jiā lǐ yǎng le yì zhī xiǎo māo.He keeps a kitten at home.
Common words: 营养 (yíng yǎng)、培养 (péi yǎng)、养成 (yǎng chéng)
All 3 characters
Open 保、存、养 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.