upholds

Verb

uphold (third-person singular simple present upholds, present participle upholding, simple past upheld, past participle upheld or (archaic) upholden)

1. (transitive) To hold up; to lift on high; to elevate.
   • The mournful train/ Echoed her grief, [...]/ With groans, and hands upheld, to move his mind, /Besought his pity to their helpless kind1899, John Dryden, Geoffrey Chaucer, Percival Chubb, Dryden's Palamon and Arcite, page 5
2. (transitive) To keep erect; to support; to sustain; to keep from falling.
   • A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.1769, The King James Bible, Proverbs 29:23
3. (transitive) To support by approval or encouragement; to vindicate; to confirm (something which has been questioned).
   • let any moral come along and she would uphold it1960 July 11, Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, Philadelphia, Pa.; New York, N.Y.: J[oshua] B[allinger] Lippincott Company, →OCLC

   Synonyms:

   vindicate

See all 4 meanings of uphold