undergird

verb

un·​der·​gird ˌən-dər-ˈgərd How to pronounce undergird (audio)
undergirded; undergirding; undergirds

transitive verb

1
archaic : to make secure underneath
took measures to undergird the shipActs 27:17 (Revised Standard Version)
2
: to form the basis or foundation of : strengthen, support
facts and statistics subtly undergird his commentarySusan Q. Stranahan

Did you know?

When undergird was a new word in the 16th century, it was ships that were undergirded—that is, made secure below—and the undergirding was done by passing a rope or chain underneath. That literal sense has long since fallen out of use, but in the 19th century undergird picked up the figurative “strengthen” or “support” meaning that we still use. Centuries before anything was undergirded, however, people and things could be girded—that is, encircled or bound with a flexible band, such as a belt. Girding today is more often about preparing oneself to fight or to do something difficult, as in “girding themselves for an ideological battle.” About as old as gird is the word’s close relation, girdle, which originally referred to an article of clothing that circles the body usually at the waist; the girdles of today address the same anatomical territory but with the squeezy aim of making the waist look thinner. Gird also gives us girder, a noun referring to a horizontal piece supporting a structure.

Examples of undergird in a Sentence

the theory of evolution undergirds virtually all of modern biology
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In her capacity as narrator, Austen not only unleashes some of the most passionate, if sarcastically heightened, exegeses in praise of the novel ever to be tucked delicately into the pages of one but also takes aim at the kind of casual sexism that undergirds condescension toward the form. Adelle Waldman, New Yorker, 31 May 2025 Recently, the Council’s National Commission on Innovation and Competitiveness Frontiers issued a call to action in its report, Competing in the Next Economy: Innovating in An Age of Disruption and Discontinuity, undergirded by seven strategic pillars. Deborah Wince-Smith, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025 In our redoubt, lawfare is a catastrophe for the legitimacy of our judicial system and for the rule of law that undergirds a secure, prosperous, free society — no matter what party is the practitioner. Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 31 Mar. 2025 But the truth is that both countries’ efforts to reduce their mutual trade dependence long predated the 2020 pandemic and substantially undergirded the Phase One deal’s failure. Brendan Kelly, Foreign Affairs, 7 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for undergird

Word History

First Known Use

1526, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of undergird was in 1526

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Cite this Entry

“Undergird.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/undergird. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

undergird

verb
un·​der·​gird ˌən-dər-ˈgərd How to pronounce undergird (audio)
: to make secure : brace up : strengthen
a life undergirded by religion
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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