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sustainability

American  
[suh-stey-nuh-bil-i-tee] / səˌsteɪ nəˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

  1. the ability to be sustained, supported, upheld, or confirmed.

  2. Environmental Science. the quality of not being harmful to the environment or depleting natural resources, and thereby supporting long-term ecological balance.

    The committee is developing sustainability standards for products that use energy.


Etymology

Origin of sustainability

sustain + -ability

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.

The larger issue for stocks heading into the second quarter, however, is likely to be the speed and sustainability of the nascent recovery.

From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026

The larger issue for stocks heading into the second quarter, however, is likely to be the speed and sustainability of the nascent recovery.

From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026

At Whirlpool’s Kitchen-Aid factory in Ohio, the company has found the system performs “even better than expected,” says Scot Blommel, Whirlpool senior manager of global sustainability.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

Shares have been roughly flat over a six-month span, as investors look past upbeat earnings and worry about the sustainability of AI budgets.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 25, 2026

I hardly feel equipped to enter eighth grade, much less become a planetary leader in sustainability.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer