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"keep constant" or "hold constant"

I want to maintain the same temperature inside a climate chamber for 3 hours. Do I tell the person to "keep the temperature constant for 3 hours" inside the chamber or is it more correct to say "hold the temperature constant for 3 hours"? Or maybe I should say "maintain the set temperature for 3 hours" ?

Thank you all native english speakers for your valuable help.

Re: "keep constant" or "hold constant"

It really doesn't matter which, all are perfectly acceptable.

You must choose one, however, so how to advise you? Hmmm.

In formal instructions for scientific experiments, Latin and Greek synonyms such as "maintain" have been generally very popular. The tend to add a bit more sophistication and formality the English speaker's ear.

To my ear "keep" sounds the least formal and I personally like "hold" best, though I'm not quite sure why. Maybe it has to do with the image of holding something tightly in one's hand, so that it can't move at all, whereas "keeping something" conjures up a forgotten box in the corner of a basement.

Observers of scientific English have noticed a tendency in Physics away from the Latin and Greek tradition. For example, one hundred years ago, some new sort of long, complicated word would have been used instead of "down quark", for example. I think it's a good trend as good old Anglo-Saxon words make hard concepts seem a bit less intimidating and more fun. So that would hold in favor of choosing one of the four-letter words.

On the other hand, Latin words like "maintain" are easier to understand for speakers of Romance languages like French, Spanish, or Italian, and also any other language which has borrowed much from Latin. Remember, science is supposed to rise above any individual culture, even an English one, so anything done to make it easier for non-English speakers is good.

I’d be interested to know what the others would say.

Re: Re: "keep constant" or "hold constant"

A native English speaker would say "keep the temperature constant", whereas on a sign it would more likely say "maintain the set temperature."

Re: "keep constant" or "hold constant"

It's true what you say. A native speaker might likely say "keep the temperature constant", and that "maintain a constant temperature of..." is something we would much more likely write than say.

Are you disagreeing with me that a native speaker might also say "hold the temperature constant"? Because I've checked with a few other random native speakers who happened to be around me, just to be sure that it's not just me, and they've all agreed that "hold" is good, natural, and native.

Re: Re: "keep constant" or "hold constant"

I only disagree slightly, in that one may say "hold", but one is more likely to say "keep" in this instance. "Hold" tends to be used in speech when there is a certain physicality, a use of the hands. "Hold" also intimates a level of control, which will be affected by the skill of the user. Of course, such expressions as "hold tight!" and "hold on!" lend themselves to both literal and figurative meanings, but here I believe "keep" is more likely. Maybe there is an isogloss for each?

Re: Re: Re: "keep constant" or "hold constant"

I think "hold" assumes that the temperature is already at the point at which it is to be maintained. "Keep" says to get it to that temperature and keep it there. But actually, both would be understood to mean the same thing.