| sustain | 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. "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. Synonym: To support, uphold, subsist, assist, relieve, suffer, undergo. Origin: 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. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| sustainable | An ecosystem condition in which biodiversity, renewability, and resource productivity are maintained over time. (05 Dec 1998) |
| sustained release tablet | A drug product formulation that provides the required dosage initially and then maintains or repeats it at desired intervals. Synonym: prolonged action tablet, repeat action tablet. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sustained yield | The maintenance in perpetuity of regular, periodic harvest of wood resources from forest land without damaging the productivity of the land. (05 Dec 1998) |