Definitions for sustain
səˈsteɪnsus·tain

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. prolong, sustain, keep up(verb)

   lengthen or extend in duration or space

   "We sustained the diplomatic negotiations as long as possible"; "prolong the treatment of the patient"; "keep up the good work"

2. suffer, sustain, have, get(verb)

   undergo (as of injuries and illnesses)

   "She suffered a fracture in the accident"; "He had an insulin shock after eating three candy bars"; "She got a bruise on her leg"; "He got his arm broken in the scuffle"

3. nourish, nurture, sustain(verb)

   provide with nourishment

   "We sustained ourselves on bread and water"; "This kind of food is not nourishing for young children"

4. sustain, keep, maintain(verb)

   supply with necessities and support

   "She alone sustained her family"; "The money will sustain our good cause"; "There's little to earn and many to keep"

5. hold, support, sustain, hold up(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"; "What's holding that mirror?"

6. sustain(verb)

   admit as valid

   "The court sustained the motion"

7. confirm, corroborate, sustain, substantiate, support, affirm(verb)

   establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts

   "his story confirmed my doubts"; "The evidence supports the defendant"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. sustain(Noun)

   A mechanism which can be used to hold a note, as the right pedal on a piano.

2. sustain(Verb)

   To maintain (something), or keep it in existence.

3. sustain(Verb)

   To provide for or nourish (something).

4. sustain(Verb)

   To encourage (something).

5. sustain(Verb)

   To experience or suffer (an injury, etc.).

6. sustain(Verb)

   To confirm, prove, or corroborate (something).

Origin: From sustenir (French: soutenir), from sustineo, from sub- + teneo.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Sustain(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. Sustain(verb)

   hence, to keep from sinking, as in despondence, or the like; to support

3. Sustain(verb)

   to maintain; to keep alive; to support; to subsist; to nourish; as, provisions to sustain an army

4. Sustain(verb)

   to aid, comfort, or relieve; to vindicate

5. Sustain(verb)

   to endure without failing or yielding; to bear up under; as, to sustain defeat and disappointment

6. Sustain(verb)

   to suffer; to bear; to undergo

7. Sustain(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. Sustain(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. Sustain(noun)

   one who, or that which, upholds or sustains; a sustainer

Freebase(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Sustain

   In music, sustain is a parameter of musical sound over time. As its name implies, it denotes the period of time during which the sound remains before it becomes inaudible, or silent. Additionally, sustain is the third of the four segments in an ADSR envelope. The sustain portion of the ADSR envelope begins when the attack and decay portions have run their course, and continues until the key is released. The sustain control is used to determine the level at which the envelope will remain. While the attack, decay, and release controls are rate or time controls, the sustain control is a level control.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Sustain

   sus-tān′, v.t. to hold up: to bear: to maintain: to relieve: to prove: to sanction: to prolong.—adjs. Sustain′able, that may be sustained; Sustained′, kept up at one uniform pitch.—ns. Sustain′er, one who, or that which, sustains; Sustain′ment, act of sustaining, sustenance; Sus′tenance, that which sustains: maintenance: provisions.—adj. Sustentac′ular, supporting, pertaining to a Sustentac′ulum, a support or sustaining tissue, esp. an inferior spine of the tarsus in spiders of the genus Epeira.—v.t. Sus′tentāte, to sustain.—n. Sustentā′tion, that which sustains: support: maintenance.—adj. Susten′tative, sustaining.—ns. Sus′tentātor, a sustaining part or structure; Susten′tion, the act of sustaining; Susten′tor, one of two posterior projections of a butterfly-chrysalis.—Sustentation Fund, the scheme by which the ministers of the Free Church of Scotland are supported by voluntary contributions not local or congregational, but with a national altruism or solidarity paid into a great central fund, out of which equal stipends are paid to all alike. [L. sustinēre—sub, up, tenēre, to hold.]

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. sustain

   To sustain is to aid, succor, or support, any body of men in action or defense.

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. sustain

   At a moderate level with a vital and necessary amount or number and fair to the environment or planet.

   They did sustain their business easily and efficiently.

   Submitted by MaryC on March 13, 2020  

2. sustain

   To provide or supply what is necessary and vital.

   Their income from both their forms of employment did sustain their lifestyle.

   Submitted by MaryC on March 13, 2020  

British National Corpus

1. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'sustain' in Verbs Frequency: #578

Anagrams for sustain »

1. issuant

How to pronounce sustain?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say sustain in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of sustain in Chaldean Numerology is: 5

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of sustain in Pythagorean Numerology is: 4

Examples of sustain in a Sentence

1. Maya Angelou:

   I sustain myself with the love of family

2. Woolworths Ltd:

   Our recent review of operating performance indicates it will take many years for Masters to become profitable, we have determined we cannot continue to sustain ongoing losses from this business.

3. Jonathan Gilliam:

   You can't sustain this type of a manhunt for very long, it's just too much of a vacuum of all other resources.

4. Musin Almat Zhumabekovich:

   You are the ultimate luxury. There is a great altar of love in me, you are so beautiful that you want to worship and kiss your feet, bow and bow before your divine beauty, there are powerful vibrations of love emanating from my soul, these are powerful signals of a deep obsession with love. The fire of my infinite love for you will illuminate and burn this world and hundreds of billions of worlds around me, my love is deeper than the universe itself, my whole inner world is dedicated only to you alone, all my thinking is crazy and dreams of you, everything says in me that I need only you are one among all worlds and universes. It seems to me that my penis will explode with horny, the heart will not sustain a huge amount of love, and the mind will go crazy. Thoughts about you are a cute sweet erotic of true love feelings. My heart is the soul of the soul and my male sexual organ are completely in love with you, it is useless to even try to fall in love with another, it is absolutely useless, because I only want you alone in the whole universe. The taste of your kisses is the taste of your sweet tender soul, these are kisses of higher and at the same time deep feelings. I want to thoroughly insatiably lick and kiss literally every millimeter of your body and soul. From your kiss and touch, I fly away to nirvana, it's a billion times better than sex is a taste of true love, a trillion times better than anything else in this universe. Emotions are amplified trillions of times and the heart is supposedly stopping now from a high amount of heartbeat, adrenaline of love and happiness is going through the roof. I feel nothing but love, passion, excitement and delight, only true happiness from the fact that you are with me. You are my erotic sex muse of true love, erotic relaxation music. You are a flame that caresses, but does not burn. Cold, but sweet like an ice cream you quickly conceal from caress, sweet as sugar. You are a masterpiece of confectionery, a divine dessert, too much juicy and sweet as the most expensive, precious delicacy of the highest pleasure. Seconds with you are priceless, it seems that life has not lived in vain. I would have pounced like a wild lion on you with kisses. You have the sweetest skin tone, the rarest and the most perfect one for the envy of all, so soft, tender, sensually sexy. It seems that the most beautiful and fashionable created for your image. My male sexual organ is in love only with you, he is obsessed with your beauty, he wants and loves you more and more powerful, every day he longs for you more and more and it cannot be stopped. I feel powerful to what extent you are beautiful. You are the supreme pleasure and bliss for my eyes, nerves, the heart seems to break from love, and the soul as if wants to escape from my body and have wild sex with your soul. Author: Musin Almat Zhumabekovich

5. Frank Herbert, Chenoeh: "Coversations with Leto II":

   Life cannot find reasons to sustain it, cannot be a source of decent natural regard, unless each of us resolves to breathe such qualities into it.

Images & Illustrations of sustain

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