sustain
[verb]
Synonyms:
- maintain, continue, keep up, prolong, protract
- keep alive, aid, assist, help, nourish
- withstand, bear, endure, experience, feel, suffer, undergo
- support, bear, uphold

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Contrasted words: abandon, forsake, ignore
Related Idioms: stand by
Related Words: nourish, support, prolong, lug, pack, tote, befriend, favor, bear, endure

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

sus‧tain W3 AC /səˈsteɪn/ verb [transitive]
[Word Family: noun: sustenance, sustainability; verb: sustain; adjective: sustainable ≠ unsustainable]
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: sustenir, from Latin sustinere 'to hold up, sustain', from sub- 'up' + tenere 'to hold']

1. MAKE SOMETHING CONTINUE to make something continue to exist or happen for a period of time Synonym : maintain:
She found it difficult to sustain the children’s interest.
He was incapable of sustaining close relationships with women.
the policies necessary to sustain economic growth ⇒ sustained

2. SUFFER formal to suffer damage, an injury, or loss of money:
Two of the firefighters sustained serious injuries.
Some nearby buildings sustained minor damage.
The company has sustained heavy financial losses this year.

3. FOOD/DRINK formal if food or drink sustains a person, animal, or plant, it makes them able to continue living ⇒ sustenance:
They gave me barely enough food to sustain me.

4. GIVE STRENGTH formal to make someone feel strong and hopeful:
The thought of seeing her again was all that sustained me.

5. WEIGHT formal to hold up the weight of something Synonym : support:
He leant against her so heavily that she could barely sustain his weight.

6. IDEA formal to support an idea or argument, or prove that it is right:
This argument is difficult to sustain.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

sustain
verb
ADV. long The soil was so badly eroded it could no longer sustain crop production.
indefinitely | still
VERB + SUSTAIN be able/unable to, can/could | help (to) | be difficult to, be hard to, be impossible to This relationship would be very difficult to sustain.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲