I.to hold up, hold upright, uphold, to bear up, keep up, support, sustain (syn. fulcio).
I. Lit.
A. In gen.: “onus alicui,” Plaut. As. 3, 3, 68: “quantum hominum terra sustinet,” id. Poen. prol. 90; id. Men. 1, 1, 13: “cum Milo umeris sustineret bovem vivum,” Cic. Sen. 10, 33: “arma membraque,” Liv. 23, 45, 3; Curt. 6, 1, 11; 7, 5, 8: “infirmos baculo artus,” to support, Ov. M. 6, 27: “furcis spectacula,” Liv. 1, 35, 9: “ingenuā speculum manu,” Ov. A. A. 2, 216: “fornice exstructo, quo pons sustinebatur, Auct. B. Alex. 19, 4: manibus clipeos et hastam Et galeam,” Ov. H. 3, 119: “vix populum tellus sustinet illa suum,” id. ib. 15 (16), 182: “lapis albus Pocula cum cyatho duo sustinet,” Hor. S. 1, 6, 117: “vas ad sustinenda opsonia,” Plin. 33, 11, 49, § 140: “aër volatus alitum sustinet,” Cic. N. D. 2, 39, 101: lacus omnia illata pondera sustinens, bearing on its surface, Plin. 6, 27, 31, § 127: “ecce populus Romanus universus veluti duobus navigiis inpositus binis cardinibus sustinetur,” id. 36, 15, 24, § 119: “domum pluribus adminiculis fulcit ac sustinet,” Plin. Ep. 4, 21, 3: se, to support one's self, hold one's self up, stand, etc., Caes. B. G. 2, 25; so, “se a lapsu,” Liv. 21, 35: “se alis,” Ov. M. 4, 411. —
B. In partic., to hold or keep back, to keep in, stay, check, restrain, control, etc. (syn.: refreno, supprimo, moror): currum equosque, Lucil. ap. Cic. Att. 13, 21, 3: “currum,” id. Lael. 17, 63 (v. infra, II. B. 3.): “equos,” Caes. B. G. 4, 33: “remos,” Cic. Att. 13, 21, 3: “manum,” Ov. F. 5, 302: “sustinet a jugulo dextram,” Verg. A. 11, 750: “a jugulo nitentem sustinet hastam,” Stat. Th. 2, 648: “flumina Threiciā lyrā,” Prop. 3, 2, 2 (4, 1, 42): “nunc agendo, nunc sustinendo agmen,” Liv. 25, 36, 1: “aliud simile miraculum eos sustinuit,” id. 5, 39, 2: “signa,” id. 31, 24, 8: “gradum,” Ov. F. 6, 398: “perterritum exercitum,” Caes. B. C. 1, 71: “se,” Cic. Tusc. 4, 18, 41; Val. Fl. 3, 100: “se ab omni assensu,” i. e. to refrain, Cic. Ac. 2, 15, 48: “se a respondendo,” id. ib. 2, 32, 104. — Poet.: “celeres vias,” i. e. to halt, Sen. Hippol. 794.—
II. Trop.
A. In gen., to uphold, sustain, maintain, preserve: “dignitatem et decus civitatis,” Cic. Off. 1, 34, 124: “causam rei publicae,” id. Fam. 9, 8, 2; cf.: “causam publicam,” id. Div. in Caecil. 8, 27: “exspectationem,” id. Off. 3, 2, 6: “tris personas unus sustineo,” characters, id. de Or. 2, 24, 102: “personam magistri,” to personate, Suet. Gram. 24: “quid muneris in rem publicam fungi ac sustinere velitis,” Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 86, § 199: “historiam veterem atque antiquam haec mea senectus sustinet,” Plaut. Trin. 2, 2, 100: vitam, Maecen. ap. Sen. Ep. 101, 11.—Poet.: “(arbor) ingentem sustinet umbram,” Verg. G. 2, 297.—
B. In partic.
1. To sustain, support, maintain, by food, money, or other means: “hac (sc. re frumentariā) alimur et sustinemur,” Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 5, § 11: “veterem amicum suum labentem excepit, fulsit et sustinuit re, fortunā, fide,” id. Rab. Post. 16, 43: “qui ager non amplius hominum quinque milia potest sustinere,” id. Att. 2, 16, 1: “alicujus munificentiā sustineri,” Liv. 39, 9, 6: “hinc patriam parvosque nepotes Sustinet,” Verg. G. 2, 515: “necessitates aliorum,” Liv. 6, 15, 9: “plebem,” id. 3, 65, 6: “penuriam temporum,” Col. 9, 14, 17.—
2. To bear, undergo, endure; to hold out against, withstand (so most freq.; “syn.: fero, tolero, patior): mala ferre sustinereque,” Cic. Tusc. 5, 6, 16: “non tu scis, quantum malarum rerum sustineam,” Plaut. Merc. 2, 4, 8: “innocens suspitionem hanc sustinet causā meā,” id. Bacch. 3, 3, 32: “labores,” Cic. Rep. 1, 3: “aestatem,” Hirt. B. G. 8, 39, 3: “dolorem pedum,” Plin. Ep. 1, 12, 5: “dolores,” id. ib. 1, 12, 8: “certamen,” Liv. 33, 36, 12: “vim hostium,” Nep. Hann. 11, 4: “periculum,” Dig. 18, 6, 1: “o dii, quis hujus potentiam poterit sustinere?” Cic. Phil. 7, 6, 17: “alicujus imperia,” Caes. B. G. 1, 31: “vulnera,” id. ib. 1, 45: “Philo ea sustinere vix poterat, quae contra Academicorum pertinaciam dicebantur,” Cic. Ac. 2, 6, 18; Vatin. ap. Cic. Fam. 5, 10, 2: “Peloponnesum,” Cic. Att. 10, 12, 7: eos (rogantes), Brut. ap. Cic. Fam. 11, 13, 3; Liv. 31, 13: “senatus querentes eos non sustinuit,” id. 31, 13, 4: “justa petentem deam,” Ov. M. 14, 788: “ferrum ignemque Jovemque,” id. ib. 13, 385 et saep.—Absol.: expectes et sustineas necesse est, Mart. 9, 3, 13: “neque jam sustineri poterat,” Caes. B. G. 2, 6; cf. Cic. Fam. 12, 6, 4; Liv. 29, 6, 17.—
(β).
With obj.-clause (mostly with a negative: non sustinet, he cannot bear, cannot endure; he does not take upon himself, does not venture): “non sustineo esse conscius mihi dissimulati judicii mei,” Quint. 3, 6, 64: “non impositos supremis ignibus artus Sustinuit spectare parens,” Ov. M. 13, 584; “so negatively,” id. ib. 1, 530; 6, 367; 6, 606; 9, 439; 10, 47; id. F. 4, 850; Vell. 2, 86, 2. — “In a negative interrog.: sustinebant tales viri, se tot senatoribus, etc. ... non credidisse? tantae populi Romani voluntati restitisse? Sustineant. Reperiemus, etc.,” Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 4, § 10: “hoc quidem quis hominum sustineat petulans esse ad alterius arbitrium?” Quint. 12, 9, 10; 3, 6, 64: “deserere officii sui partes,” Plin. Ep. 9, 13, 16; 9, 13, 6: “Parmenionem rursus castigare non sustinebat,” Curt. 4, 13, 8; 6, 1, 15: “nec solus bibere sustineo,” id. 7, 5, 12; 7, 6, 15; 8, 5, 7; Vell. 2, 86, 2; Suet. Caes. 75.—Affirmatively: “quem in vinculis habituri erant, sustinuere venerari,” Curt. 5, 10, 13: “colloqui cum eo, quem damnaverat, sustinuit,” id. 6, 8, 16; 7, 5, 38; 10, 5, 25: “quae se praeferre Dianae Sustinuit,” took upon herself, presumed, Ov. M. 11, 322; so, “sustinet ire illuc,” id. ib. 4, 447; 6, 563; id. H. 5, 32; Phaedr. 4, 16, 8: aliquem videre, Auct. Cons. Liv. 135: “si quis aquam ... haurire sustineat,” Plin. 30, 7, 20, § 64: “mentiri,” Petr. 116.—
3. (Acc. to I. B.) To hold in, stop, stay, check, restrain; to keep back, put off, defer, delay: “est igitur prudentis sustinere ut currum sic impetum benevolentiae,” Cic. Lael. 17, 63; so, “impetum hostis,” Caes. B. G. 1, 24; 1, 26; 2, 11; “3, 2 et saep.: subitas hostium incursiones,” Hirt. B. G. 8, 11; cf.: “Curio praemittit equites, qui primum impetum sustineant ac morentur,” Caes. B. C. 2, 26: “bellum consilio,” Liv. 3, 60, 1: “assensus lubricos,” Cic. Ac. 2, 34, 108: “sustinenda solutio est nominis Caerelliani,” id. Att. 12, 51, 3: “oppugnationem ad noctem,” Caes. B. G. 5, 37, 6: “rem in noctem,” Liv. 5, 35, 7: “iram,” id. 2, 19, 4.
