supportive

American  

[suh-pawr-tiv, -pohr-] / səˈpɔr tɪv, -ˈpoʊr- /

adjective

1. giving support.

2. providing sympathy or encouragement.

   His family was supportive of his attempts to be a writer.

3. providing additional help, information, etc.; auxiliary.

   manufacturers of supportive materials.

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

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supportive British  

/ səˈpɔːtɪv /

adjective

1. providing support, esp moral or emotional support

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Other Word Forms

• nonsupportive adjective
• supportively adverb
• supportiveness noun
• unsupportive adjective

Etymology

Origin of supportive

First recorded in 1585–95; support + -ive

Explanation

To be supportive is to give help or assistance, or to hold something or someone up. If your parents are supportive of your dreams to become a chef, they might enroll you in cooking classes. Supportive is a snuggly word. Anything that supports you, or embraces you and holds you up is supportive. It can be physically supportive, like a girdle that holds your belly in, or emotionally supportive like a loving family or solid network of friends. A parent paying for a child's college bills is supportive financially. Things can be supportive, too — posts holding up a building are supportive. Being supportive is a good thing.

Example Sentences

“In general, we’re supportive of the direction that DWR is going, but there are concerns that there’s a cost impact,” Young said.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 20, 2026

“Evidence suggests that when families have supportive infrastructure around them, they’re more likely to have the children they want to have,” Erin Erenberg, co-founder and CEO of Chamber of Mothers, told Salon.

From Salon • Apr. 18, 2026

The new rules on day-trading margins drew supportive comments from brokers when first proposed in January by the industry’s self-regulator Finra.

From Barron's • Apr. 15, 2026

"He had been given many opportunities to say something supportive of the survivors in terms of getting accountability for them and he has continually said the files are nothing but a hoax."

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

“What about . . .” Milkman searched his memory for some white person who had shown himself unequivocally supportive of Negroes.

From "Song of Solomon" by Toni Morrison