support

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English[edit]

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Pronunciation[edit]

Etymology[edit]

The verb is a borrowing from Old French supporter; the noun is derived from the verb and from Anglo-Norman and Middle French support. Displaced Old English wreþian (“to support, sustain, uphold”).

Noun[edit]

support (countable and uncountable, plural supports)

  1. Something which supports. Often used attributively, as a complement or supplement to.
    Don't move that beam! It's a support for the whole platform.
  2. Financial or other help.
    The government provides support to the arts in several ways.
    • 2011 December 19, Kerry Brown, “Kim Jong-il obituary”, in The Guardian[1]:
      Kim was educated at the newly founded university in Pyongyang, named after his father, graduating in 1964. The 1960s and early 1970s were the golden years for the DPRK. It undertook rapid industrialisation, economically outstripped its southern competitor, and enjoyed the support of both the People's Republic of China, and the Soviet Union.
  3. Answers to questions and resolution of problems regarding something sold.
    Sure they sell the product, but do they provide support?
  4. (mathematics) in relation to a function, the set of points where the function is not zero, or the closure of that set.
    • 2004, Amara Graps, An Introduction to Wavelets — Historical Perspective
      The first mention of wavelets appeared in an appendix to the thesis of A. Haar (1909). One property of the Haar wavelet is that it has compact support, which means that it vanishes outside of a finite interval. Unfortunately, Haar wavelets are not continuously differentiable which somewhat limits their applications.
  5. (fuzzy set theory) A set whose elements are at least partially included in a given fuzzy set (i.e., whose grade of membership in that fuzzy set is strictly greater than zero).
    If the membership function of a fuzzy set is continuous, then that fuzzy set's support is an open set.
  6. Evidence.
    The new research provides further support for our theory.
  7. (computing) Compatibility and functionality for a given product or feature.
    This game has no mouse support.
  8. (gymnastics) Clipping of support position.
    2008, Christopher Sommer, Building the Gymnastic Body, the Science of Gymnastic Strength Training, page 88:
    Dip down as far as you are able, aiming to descend to the bottom of your sternum. Press back up to a support.

Antonyms[edit]

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

Verb[edit]

support (third-person singular simple present supports, present participle supporting, simple past and past participle supported)

  1. (transitive) To keep from falling.
    Don’t move that beam! It supports the whole platform.
  2. (transitive) To answer questions and resolve problems regarding something sold.
    Sure they sell the product, but do they support it?
  3. (transitive) To back a cause, party, etc., mentally or with concrete aid.
    I support France in the World Cup
  4. (transitive) To help, particularly financially.
    The government supports the arts in several ways.
  5. To verify; to make good; to substantiate; to establish; to sustain.
    The testimony is not sufficient to support the charges.
    The evidence will not support the statements or allegations.
    • J. Edwards
      to urge such arguments, as though they were sufficient to support and demonstrate a whole scheme of moral philosophy
  6. (transitive) To serve, as in a customer-oriented mindset; to give support to.
    The IT Department supports the research organization, but not the sales force.
    I don't make decisions: I just support those who do.
  7. (transitive) To be designed (said of machinery, electronics, or computers, or their parts, accessories, peripherals, or programming) to function compatibly with or provide the capacity for.
    Early personal computers did not support voice-recognition hardware or software.
  8. (transitive) To be accountable for, or involved with, but not responsible for.
    I support the administrative activities of the executive branch of the organization
  9. (archaic) To endure without being overcome; bear; undergo; to tolerate.
    • Dryden
      This fierce demeanour and his insolence / The patience of a god could not support.
    • 1881, Robert Louis Stevenson, Virginibus Puerisque:
      For a strong affection such moments are worth supporting, and they will end well; for your advocate is in your lover's heart and speaks her own language […]
  10. To assume and carry successfully, as the part of an actor; to represent or act; to sustain.
    to support the character of King Lear

Antonyms[edit]

  • (to back a cause, party, etc.): oppose

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

Statistics[edit]

Most common English words before 1923 in Project Gutenberg: month · news · prepared · #822: support · bit · India · produce

French[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From the verb supporter.

Noun[edit]

support m (plural supports)

  1. support
  2. base
  3. (heraldry) supporter

Further reading[edit]

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