underpin

[uhn-der-pin]

See more synonyms for underpin on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), un·der·pinned, un·der·pin·ning.

to prop up or support from below; strengthen, as by reinforcing a foundation.
to replace or strengthen the foundation of (a building or the like).
to furnish a foundation for; corroborate: The author's conclusions are underpinned by references to experimental findings.

Origin of underpin

First recorded in 1515–25; under- + pin

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for underpin

locate, plant, derive, depend, root, predicate, rest, stay, hinge, build, station, construct, found, prop, establish, ground

Examples from the Web for underpin

Contemporary Examples of underpin

It is also their pattern to ignore the political problems that underpin the bad military performances of our “good guys.”
Here's How to Dig Out of This 'Stupid Sh*t' U.S. Foreign Policy
Leslie H. Gelb
August 13, 2014

Historical Examples of underpin

We underpin our houses with granite; what 30 of our habits and our lives?
Dictionary of Quotations from Ancient and Modern, English and Foreign Sources
James Wood
There were laws upon laws, endeavours to underpin the framework of a decaying society.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 8
Various
There was a matter of underpinning for a start, but it costs money to underpin the west end of a cathedral.
The Burglars' Club
Henry A. Hering
I resumed: Further we must underpin the runners and work up the earth herring-wise.
The Mercy of Allah
Hilaire Belloc
Serious settlements had taken place, and rendered it necessary to underpin the walls.
Chapters in the History of the Insane in the British Isles
Daniel Hack Tuke

British Dictionary definitions for underpin

underpin

verb -pins, -pinning or -pinned (tr)

to support from beneath, esp by a prop, while avoiding damaging or weakening the superstructureto underpin a wall
to give corroboration, strength, or support to

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

Word Origin and History for underpin

1520s (figurative); 1530s (literal), from under + pin (v.). Related: Underpinned; underpinning.