Sostienen

Sostienen is the third-person plural present indicative form of the Spanish verb sostener. Sostener means to hold up, to support, to maintain or to sustain something, whether physically, financially, morally, or argumentatively. The form sostienen is used with subjects such as ellos or ustedes.

Etymology and meanings: sostener comes from Latin sustinere, meaning to hold up or to sustain. In modern Spanish, sostener can take several senses, including providing support (una estructura sostiene el techo), maintaining a position or idea (sostener una hipótesis), or continuing a state (sostener a una familia).

Usage notes: sostienen is a transitive verb option that requires a direct object. It is common in journalism, politics, and everyday speech to say that someone sostiene una tesis, sostiene la economía, or sostiene que algo es cierto. The reflexive form sostenerse can mean to rely on oneself or to remain standing: sostenerse sobre los pies.

Conjugation context: sostienen coexists with related forms such as sostengo, sostienes, sostiene, sostenemos, sostenéis, and sostienen for the present indicative. The word is also used in compound tenses with haber and in various subjunctive forms, with the same stem sostene-.

Related terms include sostenimiento (maintenance or support), sostenible (sustainable), and sostén (support, prop). The usage of sostienen aligns with standard Spanish, and its meaning remains clear across dialects that differentiate sostener from other synonymous verbs.