keep it real
Syllables: keep·it·real/ˈkiːp ɪt ˈɹiːl/
keep it real verb: to perform an individual’s experience of being black in the United States.
Verb
keep it real (third-person singular simple present keeps it real, present participle keeping it real, simple past and past participle kept it real)
- To perform an individual’s experience of being black in the United States.
- To be authentic, to be true to oneself; to be cool.
- You can trust Pablo. He always keeps it real.
- Synonyms:
- keep it one hundred
- In the imperative, an exhortation used as a departing salutation.
- A: I'm out, bro. B: Keep it real, son.
Synonyms of keep it real
Forms of keep it real
| third-person singular present | keeps it real |
|---|---|
| present participle | keeping it real |
| past participle | kept it real |
| past | kept it real |
Origin of keep it real
From keep + it + real.
Questions about keep it real
- What does keep it real mean?
- Keep it real means to perform an individual’s experience of being black in the United States.
- What part of speech is keep it real?
- Keep it real is a verb.
- How do you pronounce keep it real?
- Keep it real is pronounced /ˈkiːp ɪt ˈɹiːl/.
- What is the past tense of keep it real?
- The past tense of keep it real is kept it real.
Words near keep it real in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: keep it real (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-keep it real.ogg.
Cite this entry: “keep it real.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/keep_it_real. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.