underpin
verb (used with object)
to prop up or support from below; strengthen, as by reinforcing a foundation.
had underpinned
-
past perfectof underpin.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
When Richard Nixon abandoned the gold standard in 1971, it signaled the collapse of the Bretton Woods system, which had underpinned stable exchange rates and global trade since 1944.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2025
The constitutional provision had underpinned India's often fraught relationship with Kashmir, the only Muslim-majority region to join India at partition.
From BBC ● Dec. 10, 2023
But she also said there was no point in seeking to break long-term contracts that had underpinned the development of the massive LNG export industry.
From Reuters ● Aug. 1, 2022
A generation of young people with few job prospects began questioning the assumptions that had underpinned Spain’s young democracy.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 1, 2019
The idea with which its founder had underpinned the edifice was, like all great ideas, simple, permanent, and perfect—so simple, permanent, and perfect that it seemed amazing no one had ever thought of it before.
From The Country House by John Galsworthy
