"supporting" in the noun sense
1. support, supporting
the act of bearing the weight of or strengthening
"he leaned against the wall for support"
"supporting" in the verb sense
1. support, back up
give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to
"She supported him during the illness"
"Her children always backed her up"
2. support
support materially or financially
"he does not support his natural children"
"The scholarship supported me when I was in college"
3. back, endorse, indorse, plump for, plunk for, support
be behind approve of
"He plumped for the Labor Party"
"I backed Kennedy in 1960"
4. hold, support, sustain, hold up
be the physical support of carry the weight of
"The beam holds up the roof"
"He supported me with one hand while I balanced on the beam"
"What's holding that mirror?"
5. confirm, corroborate, sustain, substantiate, support, affirm
establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts
"his story confirmed my doubts"
"The evidence supports the defendant"
6. subscribe, support
adopt as a belief
"I subscribe to your view on abortion"
7. corroborate, underpin, bear out, support
support with evidence or authority or make more certain or confirm
"The stories and claims were born out by the evidence"
8. defend, support, fend for
argue or speak in defense of
"She supported the motion to strike"
9. support
play a subordinate role to (another performer
"Olivier supported Gielgud beautifully in the second act"
10. patronize, patronise, patronage, support, keep going
be a regular customer or client of
"We patronize this store"
"Our sponsor kept our art studio going for as long as he could"
11. digest, endure, stick out, stomach, bear, stand, tolerate, support, brook, abide, suffer, put up
put up with something or somebody unpleasant
"I cannot bear his constant criticism"
"The new secretary had to endure a lot of unprofessional remarks"
"he learned to tolerate the heat"
"She stuck out two years in a miserable marriage"
"supporting" in the adjective sense
1. encouraging, supporting
furnishing support and encouragement
"the anxious child needs supporting and accepting treatment from the teacher"
2. load-bearing, supporting
capable of bearing a structural load
"a supporting wall"
Source: WordNet® (An amazing lexical database of English)
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