sustain

sustain is a 7-letter English word with 16 senses as transitive verb, noun, and verb in the JumbleFix dictionary. One common meaning is: To keep from falling; to bear; to uphold; to support; as, a foundation sustains the superstructure; a beast sustains a load; a rope sustains a weight. Face value is 7 in Scrabble and 9 in Words With Friends. Use the entries below when you need a playable sense, a nearby word, or another arrangement of the same letters.

7 letters · Scrabble 7 · Words With Friends 9 · 16 senses

Definitions

1. transitive verb. To keep from falling; to bear; to uphold; to support; as, a foundation sustains the superstructure; a beast sustains a load; a rope sustains a weight.
2. transitive verb. Hence, to keep from sinking, as in despondence, or the like; to support.
3. transitive verb. To maintain; to keep alive; to support; to subsist; to nourish; as, provisions to sustain an army.
4. transitive verb. To aid, comfort, or relieve; to vindicate.
5. transitive verb. To endure without failing or yielding; to bear up under; as, to sustain defeat and disappointment.
6. transitive verb. To suffer; to bear; to undergo.
7. transitive verb. To allow the prosecution of; to admit as valid; to sanction; to continue; not to dismiss or abate; as, the court sustained the action or suit.
8. transitive verb. To prove; to establish by evidence; to corroborate or confirm; to be conclusive of; as, to sustain a charge, an accusation, or a proposition.
9. noun. One who, or that which, upholds or sustains; a sustainer.
10. verb. undergo (as of injuries and illnesses)

    "She suffered a fracture in the accident"

    "He had an insulin shock after eating three candy bars"

    Synonyms: get, have, suffer

11. verb. establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts

    "his story confirmed my doubts"

    "The evidence supports the defendant"

    Synonyms: affirm, confirm, corroborate, substantiate, support

12. verb. admit as valid

    "The court sustained the motion"

13. verb. supply with necessities and support

    "She alone sustained her family"

    "The money will sustain our good cause"

    Synonyms: keep, maintain

14. verb. provide with nourishment

    "We sustained ourselves on bread and water"

    "This kind of food is not nourishing for young children"

    Synonyms: nourish, nurture

15. verb. be the physical support of; carry the weight of

    "The beam holds up the roof"

    "He supported me with one hand while I balanced on the beam"

    Synonyms: hold, support

16. verb. lengthen or extend in duration or space

    "We sustained the diplomatic negotiations as long as possible"

    "prolong the treatment of the patient"

    Synonyms: prolong

Synonyms

get, have, suffer, affirm, confirm, corroborate, substantiate, support, keep, maintain, nourish, nurture, hold, prolong

Anagrams

Other playable words that use exactly the letters in sustain:

issuant

Common word forms

sustains, sustained, sustainer, sustaining, sustainable, sustainment

Words from these letters

If you are holding these tiles, the unscrambler for SUSTAIN lists every valid word you can make from the same letters, including shorter plays.