Word.ws English Dictionary

withstand

Syllables: with·stand/wɪðˈstænd/

withstand verb: to resist or endure (something) successfully.

Verb

withstand (third-person singular simple present withstands, present participle withstanding, simple past and past participle withstood)

  1. (transitive) To resist or endure (something) successfully.
    • Tests showed that a tin ceiling could withstand a temperature of 1,369° for an hour and 10 minutes, whereas plaster collapsed in 12 minutes.1980, Robert M. Jones, editor, Walls and Ceilings, Time-Life Books, →ISBN, page 65
    • Some old, underfired clay pantiles might be damaged by button mosses rooting in cracks and fissures. But most post-war tiles are hard enough to withstand a bit of moss growth.2014 October 26, Jeff Howell, “Is the Japanese knotweed threat exaggerated? Our troubleshooter calls for calm about Japanese knotweed in the garden – and moss on the roof [print version: Don't panic...
    Synonyms:
    take, bear
  2. To oppose (something) forcefully.

withstand meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Bengali and Malayalam

withstand in Tamil

ஈடுகொடு, எதிர்த்து நில், தாங்கி நில், தடுத்து நில்

withstand in Urdu

برداشت کرنا, مزاحمت کرنا

withstand in Bengali

সহ্য করা, প্রতিরোধ করা

withstand in Malayalam

പ്രതികരിക്കുക, നിലനിർത്തുക, എതിർക്കുക
More languagesFewer languages
withstand in Kannada
ಸಹಿಸು, ಭರಿಸು, ತಾಳಿಕೊ, ತಾಳು
withstand in Sanskrit
सहते sáhate
withstand in Arabic
قَاوَمَ qāwama
withstand in Thai
ต่อต้าน dtɔ̀ɔ-dtâan, ต้านทาน dtâan-taan
withstand in Vietnamese
chống chọi

Examples of withstand in a sentence

  • A hardy plant is one that can withstand the extremes of climate, such as frost.
  • It was a sturdy building, able to withstand strong winds and cold weather.
  • This bike is built to withstand even the most demanding terrain.

All 40 example sentences with withstand

Synonyms of withstand

Forms of withstand

third-person singular presentwithstands
present participlewithstanding
past participlewithstood
pastwithstood

Past tense of withstand: withstood

Origin of withstand

From Middle English withstanden, from Old English wiþstandan, from Proto-West Germanic *wiþistandan (“to withstand, resist”), equivalent to with- (“against”) + stand. Cognate with Old Frisian withstanda (“to resist”). Compare also Dutch weerstaan (“to withstand, repel”), German widerstehen (“to withstand, resist, defy”), Russian противостоять (protivostojatʹ, “to withstand”).

Words formed from withstand

Phrases with withstand

Words that rhyme with withstand

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about withstand

What does withstand mean?
Withstand means to resist or endure (something) successfully.
What is withstand in Tamil?
Withstand in Tamil is ஈடுகொடு, எதிர்த்து நில், தாங்கி நில். See Withstand meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is withstand?
Withstand is a verb.
How do you pronounce withstand?
Withstand is pronounced /wɪðˈstænd/.
What is the past tense of withstand?
The past tense of withstand is withstood.

Words near withstand in the dictionary

  1. withspeak
  2. withspeaking
  3. withspeaks
  4. withspoke
  5. withspoken
  6. withstand
  7. withstandable
  8. withstanded
  9. withstander
  10. withstanders
  11. withstanding

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: withstand (page history and authors); withstand (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); withstand (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); withstand (Bengali Wiktionary) (page history and authors); withstand (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); withstand (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); सहते (Sanskrit) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Pvanp7-withstand.wav, en-us-withstand.ogg.

Cite this entry: “withstand.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/withstand. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.