Americans often use the first saying we will talk about today . But many people likely do not know where it comes from . To keep something at bay means being unable to move closer while attacking or moving toward someone or something . If you keep something at bay , you appear to be in control of the situation . English speakers say either "keep at bay " or "hold at bay ." For example , when protecting their village , the villagers kept the armed attackers at bay through the night . The villagers did not let them come closer . However , bad people can also hold something at bay . The armed robber held police at bay for about 9 hours before they caught him . So , the robber did not let police get anywhere near him . They didn't catch him until 9 hours later . In these examples , the things being kept at bay -- the attackers and the police -- are real . You can physically touch them . But you can also use this expression about more intangible things -- ones you can't see or touch . You can also invite your old friends to come and explore your new city with you . All these things will keep loneliness away from you , or at bay . You can keep illness at bay by eating healthy food and getting enough sleep and exercise . And I can hold my desire for chocolate at bay by not buying it and keeping it in my house ! After all , one of the many definitions of "bay " is a large area of water that is partly surrounded by land . But language experts will stop them right there . To find out the origin of this expression , let's talk about another definition of "bay ." It also means to bark with long , drawn-out sounds , as when a dog cries out at the moon . Those hounds are baying . In the 14th century , barking hounds were said to be "at bay ." When dogs are kept at bay , they are kept from attacking . The Phrase Finder website says the first recorded usage of "at bay " is in an English story from the year 1330 . Back to modern times , “at bay ” is a common expression . You can use it with friends and strangers . Now , let's hear this expression used at work . Let's say you are the head of a small company that makes toys . Part of your job is to keep open lines of communication between the owner and company employees . Well , when the owner suddenly makes changes to work rules , the employees get angry . And you hear about it . The owner's solution is to throw a party for the employees . You tell her that a party will not keep their anger at bay . They only thing that will improve the situation is fair treatment . Now , there are other ways to keep something from getting worse . You can also ward off something or stave off something . To ward off a danger or illness means to prevent it from affecting you or harming you . We often use "ward off " when talking about mental health , disease or , strangely enough , evil spirits . For example , she knew that , for her , the best way to ward off a bad mood was to see a happy movie . You eat chicken soup to ward off the common cold . And some people say that you can use garlic to ward off vampires and keep them from sucking your blood . Staving off something sounds much more official . We use "stave off " in fairly serious situations , such as ship-wrecked survivors who staved off starvation by eating coconuts for eight months . Here's another example , “The single mother staved off poverty by working three jobs .” Now , what if you simply want to keep your distance from a person . You don't want to be near them . In this case , you wouldn't use “ward off ” or “stave off ” or even “at bay .” What can you use ? Well , we have a great expression for keeping distance . To keep someone at arm's length means you don't want to be close to that person . Imagine that you are holding your arm straight out in front of you . A person can't get close . And that's the point . Let's say , you meet someone . You don't know her very well , but she seems nice -- seems is the important word here . Slowly over time , you learn more about the woman . And you don't like what you see . She is strange and not in a good way . You catch her in some lies . And she appears to be a trouble-maker . So , you decide to keep her at arm's length . When you don't answer her calls and ignore her emails , she will know you are keeping her at arm's length . In this case , you could say you kept her friendship at bay . But you were never friends in the first place . So it sounds more natural to say that you kept her at arm's length . We here at Learning English have no desire to keep you at bay or at arm's length . And we certainly don't want to ward or stave you off ! You're our audience Without you , well , we wouldn't be here !