maintenance maintenance /ˈmeɪntnəns/

noun

1. () Activity involved in maintaining something in good working order  ( care , upkeep , maintenance )
   activity involved in maintaining something in good working order
    He wrote the manual on car care
   he wrote the manual on car care
   
   
2. () Means of maintenance of a family or group  ( maintenance )
   means of maintenance of a family or group
   
3. (law) the unauthorized interference in a legal action by a person having no interest in it (as by helping one party with money or otherwise to continue the action) so as to obstruct justice or promote unnecessary litigation or unsettle the peace of the community  ( criminal maintenance , maintenance )
   (law) the unauthorized interference in a legal action by a person having no interest in it (as by helping one party with money or otherwise to continue the action) so as to obstruct justice or promote unnecessary litigation or unsettle the peace of the community
    Unlike champerty, criminal maintenance does not necessarily involve personal profit
   unlike champerty, criminal maintenance does not necessarily involve personal profit
   
4. The act of sustaining life by food or providing a means of subsistence  ( maintenance , sustainment , sustenance , sustentation , upkeep )
   the act of sustaining life by food or providing a means of subsistence
    They were in want of sustenance
   they were in want of sustenance
    Fishing was their main sustainment
   fishing was their main sustainment
   
5. Court-ordered support paid by one spouse to another after they are separated  ( alimony , maintenance )
   court-ordered support paid by one spouse to another after they are separated