【释义】
"retain" means to keep sth or to continue to have sth.
“retain”是指保留某物或继续拥有某物。
It is closely related to take possession of something.
与“占有某物”的含义接近。
- He struggled to retain control of the situation.他曾努力保持对局势的控制。
- His speech could not retain the interest of his audience.他的讲话不能保持住听众的兴趣。
【释义】
"keep" is to hold something or make something stay with you.
“keep”是指拥有某物或使某物留在你身边。
or to stay in a particular condition or position.
或保持在某一特定状态或位置。
- I keep all her letters.我把她所有的信都保留着。
- We huddled together to keep warm.我们挤在一起来保暖。
- She had trouble keeping her balance .她保持平衡有困难。
【辨析】
"keep" has more broad meaning.
“keep”有更广泛的含义。（retain没有保持某种状态的含义）
In most cases we can replace "retain" with "keep"，but we seldom replace the other way around.
在大多数情况下，我们可以用“keep”来代替“retain”，但很少用相反的方式来替换。
- we can "keep watching" (continue watching).我们可以“继续观察”（继续观察）
- "keep the kids" (continue staying with them). “留住孩子”（继续和他们在一起）
In both of these cases "retain" would sound unnatural.
在上面这两种情况下，“retain”听起来不自然。
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