underpins

present tense third-person singular of underpin
as in sustains
to hold up or serve as a foundation for the central beliefs that underpin a free society

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 underpins Drawn from nearly a decade’s worth of Simon’s conversations with an actual but anonymized retired FBI agent, these encyclopedic artworks appear to revel in the research that underpins them. — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026 The breakthrough underpins modern drug development, because mirror-image versions of the same molecule can behave differently in the body — and can even produce different smells. — Adithi Ramakrishnan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026 New data from Atlantic Council researchers Jessie Yin and Lize de Kruijf shared first with Semafor, shows the greenback still underpins most global trade and foreign-exchange transactions. — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 7 Oct. 2026 The key 10-year Treasury yield, which underpins the cost of financing debt and taking out mortgage rates and can influence economic activity, just hit its highest level since 2002. — John Towfighi, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026 Yann LeCun won the 2018 Turing Award—computer science’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize—along with fellow AI researchers Geoffrey Hinton and Yoshua Bengio for their work on deep learning, the neural network technology that underpins today’s AI boom. — Emily Forlini, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2026 Yet the structural refrain that underpins this wonder of a book always returns to love. — Gabrielle Bellot, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026 Access to exceptional roughs underpins the entire collection. — Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 17 Sep. 2026 It's based on the company's MQB platform, which underpins the T-Cross subcompact SUV and the Polo hatchback. — Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 26 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for underpins
Verb
  • As a genre that sustains narrative variety and experimentation through cutting-edge style, horror almost certainly produces more than any one fan has time to find, let alone watch.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Something that died but will not stay dead, that sustains itself by feeding on the living and destroying them in turn.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Jackson supports expanding the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps certain homeowners and renters with energy costs.
    — Maydeen Merino, The Washington Examiner, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The integrated workflow also supports maintenance and repair, helping the team identify hardware issues and return robots to testing faster.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Brown ran for 115 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries and added a scoring pass.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Pettaway finished with 119 yards rushing on 14 carries that included a 12-yard touchdown run.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Some requests were for DeepSeek’s technology, a finding that bolsters assertions from Congress that the company is in bed with the CCP’s military and spying apparatus.
    — Hudson Crozier, The Washington Examiner, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Self-awareness bolsters leadership while self-surveillance nearly always undermines it.
    — Carol Geffner, Forbes.com, 29 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • In February, President Pamela Whitten and the board of trustees supported and adopted the Chicago Principles, a set of guidelines regarding how the university upholds its free speech environment.
    — Cate Charron, IndyStar, 9 Sep. 2026
  • The letter was also sent to Harry and Meghan’s team and upholds Queen Elizabeth’s wishes when Harry and Meghan stepped back from their royal roles in 2020.
    — Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 8 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Underpins.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/underpins. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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