withstand Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb resist or confront with resistance
    defy; hold; hold up.
    • The politician defied public opinion
    • The new material withstands even the greatest wear and tear
    • The bridge held
  2. verb stand up or offer resistance to somebody or something
    resist; hold out; stand firm.

WordNet

With*stand" transitive verb
Etymology
AS. wi&edh;standan. See With, prep., and Stand.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Withstood ; present participle & verbal noun Withstanding
Definitions
  1. To stand against; to oppose; to resist, either with physical or moral force; as, to withstand an attack of troops; to withstand eloquence or arguments. Piers Plowman.
    I withstood him to the face. Gal. ii. 11.
    Some village Hampden, that, with dauntless breast. The little tyrant of his fields withstood. Gray.

Webster 1913