Manteniéndolas

Manteniéndolas is the Spanish gerund form of mantener when combined with a feminine plural direct object pronoun. It expresses an ongoing action of keeping, maintaining, or preserving something that is feminine and plural, previously referenced in the discourse. The base verb mantener means to maintain, keep, or support, and the gerund manteniendo conveys the progressive aspect. When a pronoun such as las is attached to the end of the gerund, the form becomes manteniéndolas. The accent on the í is required to preserve the correct stress after adding the pronoun.

Usage is typical in constructions with auxiliary verbs to form progressive phrases, especially with estar: La empresa está manteniéndolas en buen estado; Estamos manteniéndolas limpias; Estamos manteniéndolas actualizadas. The pronoun las must agree in gender and number with the noun it replaces; masculine plural would yield manteniéndolos. In longer sentences, the gerundial phrase can function as a complement or adverbial modifier, indicating the manner or continuity of the action.

Notes on scope and references: This form is common for referring to items such as las instalaciones, las herramientas, las políticas, or cualquier otro sustantivo femenino plural. It is a standard example of clitic attachment to a Spanish gerund, and it illustrates how pronouns modify the action without changing the verb’s tense. Practically, manteniéndolas is used whenever the speaker intends to emphasize that the feminine plural referents are being kept or maintained over time.