sustenance

[ suhs-tuh-nuh ns ]
/ ˈsʌs tə nəns /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR sustenance ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

means of sustaining life; nourishment.
means of livelihood.
the process of sustaining.
the state of being sustained.

Origin of sustenance

1250–1300; Middle English sustena(u)nce < Anglo-French; Old French sostenance. See sustain, -ance

OTHER WORDS FROM sustenance

sus·te·nance·less, adjective non·sus·te·nance, noun self-sus·te·nance, noun

Words nearby sustenance

sustained-action tablet, sustained-release, sustainer, sustaining pedal, sustaining program, sustenance, sustentacular, sustentacular cell, sustentaculum, sustentation, sustentation fund

Words related to self-sustenance

autonomy, self-reliance, independence, self-support

Example sentences from the Web for self-sustenance

  • Though she was always pale in colour and frail looking, there was within her a great power of self-sustenance.

    Orley Farm |Anthony Trollope

  • Besides, she was not sure that she was really face to face again with the bitter problem of self-sustenance.

    Sister Carrie |Theodore Dreiser

British Dictionary definitions for self-sustenance

sustenance
/ (ˈsʌstənəns) /

noun

means of sustaining health or life; nourishment
means of maintenance; livelihood
Also: sustention (səˈstɛnʃən) the act or process of sustaining or the quality of being sustained

Word Origin for sustenance

C13: from Old French sostenance, from sustenir to sustain