Meaning & use
keeping to yourself
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Meanings
phrasefixed phrase
Spending time alone and not talking much to other people; being private and not seeking company.
Grammar: Used after the verb 'be' or as a noun phrase: 'Her keeping to yourself surprised us.' The subject is usually a person or people.
Patterns
- be keeping to yourself
- keeping to yourself in a place
She's been keeping to herself since she moved to the new city.
He doesn't join group chats; he prefers keeping to himself.
After the argument, they were both keeping to themselves for a few days.
phrasefixed phrase
Not telling other people about your personal life or feelings; staying private about your own business.
Grammar: Often used with 'about' to specify what is kept private: 'keeping to yourself about your plans.'
Patterns
- keeping to yourself about something
She was keeping to herself about her new job until it was official.
He's very good at keeping to himself when it comes to family matters.
They kept to themselves about the divorce for months.
Common combinations
- keep to yourself
- He tends to keep to himself at parties.
- keep yourself to yourself
- In British English, you often hear 'She keeps herself to herself.'
- prefer keeping to yourself
- I prefer keeping to myself on long train journeys.
- keeping to yourself for a while
- After the breakup, she was keeping to herself for a while.
Synonyms and how they differ
- reclusive
- Stronger and more negative; it suggests avoiding people almost completely, while 'keeping to yourself' can be a simple choice.
- solitary
- Focuses on being alone by nature or habit, not necessarily on being private about information.
- private
- Describes a person who does not share personal information, but does not necessarily mean they avoid company.
Opposites
Word family
- keep to oneself phrase
- The base form of the idiom, meaning to stay private and alone.
Commonly confused: keeping to yourself or keep yourself to yourself?
keeping to yourself vs keep yourself to yourself
This British variant uses a reflexive pronoun; it means the same as 'keep to yourself' but is more common in British English.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'keeping to yourself' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The phrase uses a reflexive pronoun that must match the subject: 'he ... himself.' Option A has 'she' with 'yourself,' option C has 'they' with 'yourself,' and option D has 'I' with 'yourself,' so only B is grammatically correct.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “keeping to yourself”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.