WordWeight : Weighing the Words

Pronunciation : Sus*tain"
Part of Speech : v.
Etymology : [OE. sustenen, susteinen, OF. sustenir, sostenir, F. soutenir (the French prefix is properly fr. L. subtus below, fr. sub under), L. sustinere; pref. sus- (see Sub-) + tenere to hold. See Tenable, and cf. Sustenance.]
Definition : 1. 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. Every pillar the temple to sustain. Chaucer.

2. Hence, to keep from sinking, as in despondence, or the like; to support. No comfortable expectations of another life to sustain him under the evils in this world. Tillotson.

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

4. To aid, comfort, or relieve; to vindicate. Shak. His sons, who seek the tyrant to sustain. Dryden.

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

6. To suffer; to bear; to undergo. Shall Turnus, then, such endless toil sustain Dryden. You shall sustain more new disgraces. Shak.

7. 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. To prove; to establish by evidence; to corroborate or confirm; to be conclusive of; as, to sustain a charge, an accusation, or a proposition.

Syn. -- To support; uphold; subsist; assist; relieve; suffer; undergo.

t. [imp. & p. p. Sustained; p. pr. & vb. n. Sustaining.]
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913

Pronunciation : Sus*tain"
Part of Speech : n.
Definition : Defn: One who, or that which, upholds or sustains; a sustainer. [Obs.] I waked again, for my sustain was the Lord. Milton.
Source : Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913