From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
maintenance
n 1: activity involved in maintaining something in good working
order; "he wrote the manual on car care" [syn: care,
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]
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, upkeep]
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 (19 Sep 2003) [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)