upkeep
/ˈʌpkip/noun, verb
upkeep is spelled U-P-K-E-E-P: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, upkeep means “Maintenance; the act or effort of keeping something in good and working condition” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of upkeep is upkeeps.
How many letters and syllables are in upkeep?
| Letters | 6: U-P-K-E-E-P |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.7 times per million words; the 21,209th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is upkeep?
Upkeep appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce upkeep?
- US /ˈʌpkip/
Upkeep has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-upkeep.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-AnotherFriendlyHuman-upkeep.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of upkeep
- upkeeps plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- upkeeping participle, present
- upkept participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does upkeep mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Maintenance; the act or effort of keeping something in good and working condition.
I would enjoy having a swimming pool, but I don't want to deal with the upkeep.
verb
- 1
UKTo maintain (something) or keep it in good repair.
Do you know how to upkeep a boat?
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Upkeep in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | entretien |
| German | Wartung, Instandhaltung, Unterhalt, Pflege , warten, instandhalten |
| Portuguese | manutenção |
| Spanish | mantenimiento, manutención, mantención , mantener |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does upkeep come from?
From up + keep.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).