subsist
verb (used without object)
to exist; continue in existence.
subsisted
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past participleof subsist.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof subsist.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
subsistverb (used without object)to exist; continue in existence.
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.
Cramped inside vessels overladen with precious cargo, crewmembers subsisted on a miserable diet of hardtack, an unleavened bread, and salted meat and fish that routinely spoiled and left many gravely ill.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
The pet-food company Evermore is extolling the benefits of sous vide–cooked turkey, lamb, chicken and beef; the founders are so passionate about these “human grade” recipes that they personally subsisted on them for 31 days.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 28, 2026
In the end the team - who subsisted on water, chocolate and sattu, a mixture of chickpea, barley and wheat flour - retrieved four bodies.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2024
“We are the people that have subsisted and we have lived here, so we need to protect it all.”
From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2024
He would end his remarks, he said, by emphasising once again the friendly feelings that subsisted, and ought to subsist, between Animal Farm and its neighbours.
From "Animal Farm: A Fairy Story" by George Orwell
