1
as in basis
an immaterial thing upon which something else rests
the underpinnings of the theory have recently been called into question
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in support
a structure that holds up or serves as a foundation for something else
the underpinnings of the bridge were seriously damaged in the collision
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in sustaining
to hold up or serve as a foundation for
the central beliefs that underpin a free society
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of underpinning
Charlie Wood, WIRED, 3 Nov. 2024
Hitchcock’s point-of-view shots evoke characters looking at the world with yearning and horror, guilt and responsibility, and those are also the emotional underpinnings of Soderbergh’s movie.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2025
Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 4 Dec. 2024
Jensen Huang’s company has become the poster child for all things AI, with its graphics processing units underpinning the technology’s large language models.
—Samantha Subin, CNBC, 3 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for underpinning 
Noun
Figueiredo figured that the numerator could be the secret to finding the geometric underpinnings of more realistic particle interactions.
—Charlie Wood, WIRED, 3 Nov. 2024
Hitchcock’s point-of-view shots evoke characters looking at the world with yearning and horror, guilt and responsibility, and those are also the emotional underpinnings of Soderbergh’s movie.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2025
Verb
There is no better book to give you an insider’s feel for what constitutes the sartorial intelligence underpinning Italian men’s fashion.
—Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 4 Dec. 2024
Jensen Huang’s company has become the poster child for all things AI, with its graphics processing units underpinning the technology’s large language models.
—Samantha Subin, CNBC, 3 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for underpinning
Recent Examples of Synonyms for underpinning
Noun
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The world is currently in the opening stages of a massive new agricultural revolution that is combining recent advances in high tech and data sciences with traditional agricultural methods to meet the challenges of the 21st century on a sustainable basis.—
Chris Gallagher,
USA TODAY,
15 Feb. 2025
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This area is known for its bustling immigrant street vendors, but lately there's been Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer sightings on a near daily basis, and it's gotten quieter.—
Jasmine Garsd,
NPR,
15 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The cruelty and barbarism of this action shockingly overturns the purpose of USAID, which is to gain international support and influence for the U.S. in developing countries.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Feb. 2025
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On Sunday, thousands headed to downtown Los Angeles to protest Trump’s actions and show their support for an immigrant community that is very much woven into the fabric of the region.—
Fidel Martinez,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The falling birth rate is a concern in terms of sustaining economic development and the provision of support for large numbers of elderly people in the future.—
George Monastiriakos,
Newsweek,
31 Dec. 2024
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While many artists can easily build a brand and fandom on social media, and then release music across streaming platforms without a major record label deal, managing and sustaining an entire career takes more know-how.—
Andrea Zarczynski,
Forbes,
31 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Developer Rick Caruso, who lost to Bass in the 2022 mayoral election and has been sharply critical of her since the fires, this week launched a foundation headed by a collection of business leaders to focus on recovery.—
Julia Wick,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Feb. 2025
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Chelsea Clinton did not receive any compensation for her work at the foundation since at least the fiscal year ending December 2013.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
7 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Yet despite the numerical advantage, the Russian military struggled to push the Ukrainians out of its territory and so Moscow eventually called in foreign reinforcements, deploying some 12,000 North Korean soldiers into the Kursk region.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN,
7 Feb. 2025
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Additionally, there are costs involved in data collection and computation in the instruction tuning and reinforcement learning from human feedback stages.—
Ambuj Tewari,
The Conversation,
29 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The top priority for now is identifying the victims, supporting their families and treating the two survivors, Choi told a disaster management meeting in Seoul.—
Ju-min Park and Hongji Kim,
USA TODAY,
31 Dec. 2024
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If your current job in comms is growing stale, consider pivoting to supporting an organization fighting climate change.—
Aliza Knox,
Forbes,
31 Dec. 2024
Noun
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And whatever happened to the bedrock idea of being a good neighbor?—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Feb. 2025
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Further, the consolidation of civil rights terms in popular language has led to the type of cultural misunderstanding that has put bedrock legislation at risk.—
Ken Makin,
The Christian Science Monitor,
31 Jan. 2025
Verb
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According to the wildlife charity (WDC), Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins, spinner dolphins, orcas, Australian humpback dolphins and sperm whales have all been observed carrying dead calves.—
Tom Howarth,
Newsweek,
3 Jan. 2025
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Acker went from carrying 72 times in 2023 to once last season but can handle the load if necessary or serve as a lead blocker.—
Jesse Temple,
The Athletic,
3 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near underpinning
Cite this Entry
“Underpinning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/underpinning. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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