From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
maintenance
n 1: activity involved in maintaining something in good working
order; "he wrote the manual on car care" [syn: care,
maintenance, upkeep]
2: means of maintenance of a family or group
3: court-ordered support paid by one spouse to another after
they are separated [syn: alimony, maintenance]
4: the act of sustaining life by food or providing a means of
subsistence; "they were in want of sustenance"; "fishing was
their main sustainment" [syn: sustenance, sustentation,
sustainment, maintenance, upkeep]
5: 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"
[syn: maintenance, criminal maintenance]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Maintenance \Main"te*nance\, n. [OF. maintenance. See
Maintain.]
1. The act of maintaining; sustenance; support; defense;
vindication.
[1913 Webster]
Whatsoever is granted to the church for God's honor
and the maintenance of his service, is granted to
God. --South.
[1913 Webster]
2. That which maintains or supports; means of sustenance;
supply of necessaries and conveniences.
[1913 Webster]
Those of better fortune not making learning their
maintenance. --Swift.
[1913 Webster]
3. (Crim. Law) An officious or unlawful intermeddling in a
cause depending between others, by assisting either party
with money or means to carry it on. See Champerty.
--Wharton.
[1913 Webster]
4. Those actions required for the care of machinery, a
building, etc., to keep it clean and in proper functioning
condition, and to prevent or forestall damage due to
normal use.
[PJC]
5. Payments, such as child support or alimony, to a dependent
child not living with one or to a divorced wife.
[PJC]
Cap of maintenance. See under Cap.
[1913 Webster]
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (8 July 2008) [foldoc]:
maintenance
<programming> The modification of a software product, after
delivery, to correct faults, to improve performance or other
attributes, or to adapt the product to a changed environment.
Maintenance is an important part of the software life-cycle.
It is expensive in manpower and resources, and one of the aims
of software engineering is to reduce its cost.
(1996-12-27)