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1. Furnishing support and encouragement
   "the anxious child needs supporting and accepting treatment from the teacher";
   - encouraging
    
2. Capable of bearing a structural load
   "a supporting wall";
   - load-bearing

1. The act of bearing the weight of or strengthening
   - support

1. Give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to
   "She supported him during the illness";
   - back up
    
2. Provide material help or money to cover living expenses
   "he does not support his natural children"; "The scholarship supported me when I was in college"
    
3. Pick one person to give support and approval to in a particular role
   "I supported Kennedy in 1960";
   - back, endorse, indorse, plump for, plunk for
    
4. Be the physical support of; carry the weight of
   "He supported me with one hand while I balanced on the beam";
   - hold, sustain, hold up
    
5. Establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts
   "The evidence supports the defendant";
   - confirm, corroborate, sustain, substantiate, affirm
    
6. Adopt as a belief
   "I support to your view on abortion";
   - subscribe
    
7. Back up with evidence or authority or make more certain or confirm
   - corroborate, underpin, bear out
    
8. Argue or speak in defence of
   "She supported the motion to strike";
   - defend, fend for
    
9. (dramaturgy) play a subordinate role to (another performer)
   "Olivier supported Gielgud beautifully in the second act"
    
10. Be a regular customer or client of
    "We support this store";
    - patronize, patronise [Brit], patronage, keep going
     
11. Put up with something or somebody unpleasant
    - digest, endure, stick out, stomach, bear, stand, tolerate, brook, abide, suffer, put up

Derived forms: supportings

See also: bearing, supportive, turn out

Type of: act, activity, agree, allow, approve, argue, check, concord, concur, correspond, countenance, fit, foster, gibe, give, greenlight, green-light, hold, jibe, let, marry, marry up, match, nurture, O.K., OK, okay, permit, play, reason, represent, sanction, tally

Antonym: negate

Encyclopedia: Supporting