for keeps

Fetched 2026-10-28 (live).

Datamuse reports no synonyms or antonyms for this word.

Prepositional phrase

1. With an agreement or intention to retain what one gains or receives.
   • When we gamble at poker, we play for keeps.
2. With a strong competitive resolve to win or succeed, as in sports or business.
3. Permanently, so that one can keep something indefinitely.

Source: Wiktionary · CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wiktionary) · cached copy, not a rewrite.