supportive

[ suh-pawr-tiv, -pohr- ]

/ səˈpɔr tɪv, -ˈpoʊr- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR supportive ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

providing sympathy or encouragement: His family was supportive of his attempts to be a writer.

providing additional help, information, etc.; auxiliary: manufacturers of supportive materials.

Medicine/Medical. helping to maintain a normal physiological balance, as by the intravenous administration of required nutriment.

Nearby words

support price, support system, supportable, supporter, supporting, supportive, supportive psychotherapy, supportive therapy, supposal, suppose, supposed

Origin of supportive

First recorded in 1585–95; support + -ive

Related forms

sup·port·ive·ness, nounnon·sup·port·ive, adjectiveun·sup·port·ive, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for supportive

Yes, some people have been inconvenienced by traffic delays or annoyed by supportive athletes.
What Would Happen if I Got in White Cop’s Face?|Goldie Taylor|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Many historians have leveled criticism at the Code, arguing that it was too conservative and supportive of the bourgeois.
Napoleon Was a Dynamite Dictator|J.P. O’Malley|November 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her husband was supportive and even took the photos to submit with her application.
From Baltimore Ravens Cheerleader to Mrs. Robinson|Brandy Zadrozny|November 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Even Republicans who opposed a federal wage hike in this cycle were often supportive or silent about state and local increases.
To Make Their Victory Durable, the GOP Must Fix the Minimum Wage|Dmitri Mehlhorn|November 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST

I point out to both of them that Wahlberg seems the very model of a supportive spouse.
Jenny McCarthy: I Am Not Anti-Vaccine|Lloyd Grove|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Some may be conducting fibrils, but it is hard to distinguish these from supportive.
Journal of Entomology and Zoology: Volume 6, Number 4, December 1914|Various
Floris and the other closely knit agricultural villages of Fairfax County were exceptionally unified and supportive.
Frying Pan Farm|Elizabeth Brown Pryor
This may in part be due to the nature of the insulating and supportive apparatus.
Journal of Entomology and Zoology: Volume 6, Number 4, December 1914|Various
It is tough on criminals and supportive of police, and it has been languishing in these hallowed halls for years now.
Complete State of the Union Addresses from 1790 to 2006|Various
The supportive appliance is kept in position for ten days or two weeks.
Lameness of the Horse|John Victor Lacroix

British Dictionary definitions for supportive

supportive

/ (səˈpɔːtɪv) /

adjective

providing support, esp moral or emotional support

Derived Forms

supportively, adverbsupportiveness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012