Sustain Sustained Support Verb B Weight Bear  Syn 

sus·tain

I

\\sə-ˈstān\\ transitive verb1. to give support or relief to
2. to supply with sustenance :

nourish

3.

keep up

,

prolong

4. to support the weight of :

prop

; also : to carry or withstand (a weight or pressure)
5. to buoy up
    sustained by hope
6.
  a. to bear up under
  b.

suffer

,

undergo

      sustained heavy losses
7.
  a. to support as true, legal, or just
  b. to allow or admit as valid
      the court sustained the motion
8. to support by adequate proof :

confirm

    testimony that sustains our contention
• sus·tained·ly \\-ˈstā-nəd-lē, -ˈstānd-lē\\ adverb
• sus·tain·er noun

II

noun: a musical effect that prolongs a note's resonance
    utilizing heavy sustain on his guitar — Bill Dahl

sustain
  late 13c., from O.Fr. sustenir "hold up, endure," from L. sustinere "hold up, support, endure," from sub "up from below" + tenere "to hold" (see tenet).

sustain
sus·tain / sE5stein / verb [VN]
1. to provide enough of what sb / sth needs in order to live or exist
   维持(生命、生存):
   Which planets can sustain life?
   哪些行星可以维持生命的存在？
   The love and support of his family sustained him during his time in prison.
   家人的关爱和支持帮助他度过了狱中的岁月。
2. to make sth continue for some time without becoming less
   使保持；使稳定持续
   SYN 

maintain

:
   a period of sustained economic growth
   经济持续增长的时期
   a sustained attack
   持续的攻击
   She managed to sustain everyone's interest until the end of her speech.
   她使每个人兴趣盎然,一直听她把话讲完。
3. (formal) to experience sth bad
   遭受；蒙受；经受
   SYN 

suffer

:
   to sustain damage / an injury / a defeat
   遭受损失；受伤；遭到失败
   The company sustained losses of millions of dollars.
   公司遭受了数以百万元计的巨大损失。
4. to provide evidence to support an opinion, a theory, etc.
   证明；证实
   SYN 

uphold

:
   The evidence is not detailed enough to sustain his argument.
   这一证据过于笼统,不足以证明他的论点。
5. (formal) to support a weight without breaking or falling
   支撑；承受住
   SYN 

bear

:
   The ice will not sustain your weight.
   这冰承受不了你的体重。
6. (law 律) to decide that a claim, etc. is valid
   认可；确认；准许；支持
   SYN 

uphold

:
   The court sustained his claim that the contract was illegal.
   法庭支持他的观点,认定该合同不合法。
    Objection sustained ! (= said by a judge when a lawyer makes an

objection

in court)
   反对成立！

sustain verb

sus·tain
\səˈstān\ verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English susteinen, sustenen, from Old French sustenir, from Latin sustinēre to hold up, sustain, from sus- (variant of sub- up) + -tinēre (from tenēre to hold) — more at ,
transitive verb
1. : to give support (as military support) to : uphold by aiding or backing up : furnish relief to
 < if the director be sustained in the general endeavor to make the observatory useful — Cleveland Abbe >
 < they had behind them no great organization such as that which sustained French and his colleagues — F.W.Crofts >
 < the officer witnesses … with a record of service to their country to sustain them — H.W.Baldwin >
2. : to provide for the support or maintenance of : supply with sustenance :
 < plant life sustains the living world — D.C.Peattie >
 < commitment of trained men to the machines that sustain war — C.W.deKiewiet >
 < the sort of defense which our economy can sustain — W.F.Knowland >
 < settlements along the seacoast … are sustained by the fishing trade — American Guide Series: New Jersey >
 < preached as he never preached before, sustaining himself with lemon juice and vegetables — Time >
3.
 a. : to cause to continue (as in existence or a certain state or in force or intensity) : to keep up especially without interruption, diminution, or flagging : ,
  < found it difficult to sustain an interest in their talk — L.C.Douglas >
  < the sort of writing which early established and has long sustained his reputation — Bliss Perry >
  < policies which they said would be needed to sustain prosperity — Fritz Sternberg >
  < the civil war period was lived at a high tension that could not be sustained — H.L.Matthews >
  < dissatisfaction with the work of the legislatures sustains the efforts of those critics — A.N.Holcombe >
  < difficult for even the most attentive and genuinely musical listener to sustain maximum attention every minute — Hunter Mead >
  < too fatigued to sustain a consecutive conversation — Lucien Price >
 b.
  (1) : to allow (a musical tone) to sound without dying away as long as the rhythm will permit
  (2) : to play (a musical composition or part) in legato style
4.
 a. : to bear up from or as if from below : support the weight of : hold up :
  < bones are the solid elements of structure that sustain the body — Morris Fishbein >
  < pins suitable for sustaining kilts — Ashley Halsey >
 b. : to carry or withstand (a weight or pressure)
  < the dam … could not sustain the heavy head of water — American Guide Series: Minnesota >
  < beam … had to be much thicker in order to sustain even the same weight — S.F.Mason >
5. : to prevent (as one's mind or spirit) from sinking or giving way : buoy up
 < the scientist … is sustained, as are the religious, by a profound and unshakable faith — P.B.Sears >
 < excitement sustained me — Polly Adler >
 < hope that had sustained them — Frank Yerby >
 < sustain the morale of the civilian population — R.D.W.Connor >
 < I read history to sustain myself in the violent confusions of these years — Ralph Bates >
 < comfort and sustain the parents — Agnes S. Turnbull >
6. : endure: as
 a. : to submit to without failing or yielding : bear up under
  < I couldn't sustain such an act — Rex Ingamells >
  < a man bravely sustaining the burden of fear — Time >
  < he would wonder whether he could ever again sustain a year's teaching — Lucien Price >
 b. : to bear as an affliction : to bear with suffering
  < the tremendous nervous shock which has been sustained — H.G.Armstrong >
  < sustained a concussion of the brain — Allan Nevins >
 c. : , ,
  < must be prepared to sustain heavy losses — Bruce Bliven b. 1889 >
  < the walls of its building bear bullet scars sustained in a riot — American Guide Series: New York City >
7.
 a. : to support as true, legal, or just; sometimes :
 b. : to allow or admit as valid
  < the court sustained the motion >
8. : to support by adequate proof : , ,
 < testimony that sustains our contention >
 < a thesis which no one … could conceivably sustain — Times Literary Supplement >
9. : to act the part of (a character)
 < no reason why she should not have sustained both roles — Anthony Powell >
 < directing that no letter or message be received on any occasion whatsoever from the enemy … but such as should be directed to them in the characters they respectively sustained — H.E.Scudder >
intransitive verb
: ,
 < beyond a country's capacity to sustain, it recommended grants rather than loans — Americas >

Synonyms: see ,