Definition of keep at

The phrase "keep at" has roots in Old English, dating back to the 11th century. At that time, the expression was "ceapan at," which translates to "continue doing." This phrase evolved over time, with variations such as "kepe at" (13th century) and "queppe" (14th century) being documented in Old and Middle English. The phrase's meaning remained consistent throughout its history, signifying persistence in an action or activity. This sense of continuity evolved into the modern idiom, "keep at," which simply encourages someone to persist in a particular behavior or pursuit. The phrase lost the "e" and the inflectional ending of the Old English verb, "ceapan," which transformed into "cepas-" and then to "keep-" in Middle English. The phrase evolved again in Early Modern English when it became "keep at," as depicted in Shakespeare's plays and in the King James Bible. The use of "at" in the phrase does not refer to a physical location, as the preposition "in" sometimes does in occurrences such as "keeping in practice." Rather, it indicates the ongoing action of trying or striving to accomplish something, suggested by the phrase's historic origins. In short, "keep at" has been a near-constant English expression for nearly a millennium, originating as "ceapan at" and evolving through various forms until it became the familiar phrase we use today to encourage persistence and sustained effort.