self-subsistence

noun

Definition of self-subsistencenext
as in independence
the ability to care for one's self the goal of the program is to help these people achieve self-subsistence and to end their dependence on government aid

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of self-subsistence Pavas were often worn by jibaros, which were rural residents who worked on the island as self-subsistence farmers. — Edward Segarra, USA Today, 10 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-subsistence
  1. independence
  2. autonomy
Noun
  • Some 13,000 people died in Kosovo's war, which saw ethnic Albanians launch a rebellion to gain independence from Serbia.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Part of its independence means that the mission does not participate in the Homeless Management Information System, a database maintained by LAHSA to track homeless people engaged with the system.
    — David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of independence
Noun
  • The mission-management and autonomy components communicated through OMS and UCI rather than through custom point-to-point interfaces.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Here's where autonomy stops being binary and starts being a loop.
    — John Werner, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of autonomy

Browse Nearby Words

self-starters
self-subsistence
self-subsistent
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Self-subsistence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-subsistence. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of vacuous

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Words of the Week - Aug. 14

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All