as in independence
the ability to care for one's self
hopes to achieve full self-support within a year of graduating from college
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Recent Examples of self-support
Garmire has been setting FKTs for more than a decade, with career highlights including unsupported or self-supported records on the John Muir Trail in California, Vermont’s Long Trail, the Colorado Trail, the Wonderland Trail in Washington, and the Arizona Trail.
—
Outside, 26 Sep. 2025
In one show of self-support, the supplies store that many of the RAD’s artists used — Cheap Joe’s — has been taken over, renamed and reopened by a new couple, Philip and Tina DeAngelo, who already owned a studio in the RAD.
—Charlotte Observer, 18 Sep. 2025
And for the public, keep it to low-risk self-support — journaling prompts, CBT-style reflections and light coaching — wrapped in clear disclaimers and with instant handoffs to a human whenever risk appears.
—John Samuels, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2025
But the idea of hiking the PCT self-supported has been percolating for about five years.
—Emily Lapointe, Outside Online, 1 May 2025
Dreyer intended to swim self-supported about 83 miles across Lake Michigan, an ultra-endurance feat expected to take at least 72 hours.
—Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 5 Sep. 2024
Since the self-support era, Tokyo has introduced at least one new plan a decade to improve rural development.
—Fritz Schumann, Foreign Affairs, 29 Mar. 2015
Outside, 26 Sep. 2025
In one show of self-support, the supplies store that many of the RAD’s artists used — Cheap Joe’s — has been taken over, renamed and reopened by a new couple, Philip and Tina DeAngelo, who already owned a studio in the RAD.
—Charlotte Observer, 18 Sep. 2025
And for the public, keep it to low-risk self-support — journaling prompts, CBT-style reflections and light coaching — wrapped in clear disclaimers and with instant handoffs to a human whenever risk appears.
—John Samuels, Forbes.com, 19 Aug. 2025
But the idea of hiking the PCT self-supported has been percolating for about five years.
—Emily Lapointe, Outside Online, 1 May 2025
Dreyer intended to swim self-supported about 83 miles across Lake Michigan, an ultra-endurance feat expected to take at least 72 hours.
—Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 5 Sep. 2024
Since the self-support era, Tokyo has introduced at least one new plan a decade to improve rural development.
—Fritz Schumann, Foreign Affairs, 29 Mar. 2015
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-support
Noun
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Abigail hoped that when the colonies achieved independence, women in America would join in the victory and finally have a say over their own lives without having to bow to the authority of men in managing their homes and property, and planning for their futures.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Jan. 2026
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Credible credit card debt forgiveness programs, also known as debt settlement programs, can be the difference between regaining your financial independence and being further stuck with impossible-to-pay balances.—
Matt Richardson,
CBS News,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Recent advances now allow machines to perceive, reason, and act with greater autonomy in less structured environments.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Jan. 2026
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But even the best of these, on their own, often become accelerants for experimentation rather than engines for durable autonomy.—
Sanjay Srivastava,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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China is reportedly poised to approve the imports, despite a top-down push for technology self-sufficiency.—
Tim McDonnell,
semafor.com,
13 Jan. 2026
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This means both rapid, flexible investments to address urgent humanitarian needs and sustainable support for civil society and markets to help transition from assistance to self-sufficiency.—
Ciaran Donnelly,
Time,
11 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Self-support.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-support. Accessed 22 Jan. 2026.
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