sustainable

IPA/səˈsteɪnəbl/
KK[səstˈenəbəl]IPA/səˈsteɪnəbl/

sustainable — adjective

  • sustainablepositive
  • more sustainablecomparative
  • most sustainablesuperlative

1. able to keep going at the same level or rate over a long period without failing

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

able to keep going at the same level or rate over a long period without failing or running out

Example

The company's rapid growth was not sustainable, so the board decided to slow down.

be + not + sustainable — common negative pattern

Ayesha knew her work pace was unsustainable after working twelve-hour days for a month.

unsustainable — negative prefix form

Common collocations
  • sustainable growth
  • sustainable pace
  • sustainable rate
  • sustainable level
  • sustainable business model
  • economically sustainable
  • financially sustainable
Synonyms
  • maintainable

    less common; focuses on ability to keep something at a certain level

  • viable

    emphasises that something can succeed, not just continue

  • workable

    informal; suggests a practical solution rather than a long-term rate

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

sustainable + noun (growth, pace, level)

be sustainable

be not sustainable / be unsustainable

Usage Note

Often negated: unsustainable is very common when talking about growth rates, work hours, debt levels, or business models that cannot continue.

Common Mistakes

The economic development is sustainable for the environment.
The economic development is environmentally sustainable.
sustainable already includes the idea of long-term continuation; to specify the environmental meaning, add environmentally or use sense 2.

2. relating to practices or products that protect natural resources from being exha

2.adjectiveB1
Definition

relating to practices or products that protect natural resources from being exhausted or permanently harmed, so they remain available long into the future

Example

The city council voted to invest more in sustainable energy sources like solar power.

sustainable + energy sources — common collocation

Mauricio switched to a brand of sustainable clothing made from recycled materials.

Common collocations
  • sustainable development
  • sustainable energy
  • sustainable agriculture
  • sustainable future
  • sustainable living
  • sustainable practices
  • sustainable food
  • sustainable design
  • environmentally sustainable
  • ecologically sustainable
  • sustainable tourism
  • sustainable fashion
Synonyms
  • eco-friendly

    informal; narrower — focuses on low environmental harm, not long-term continuation

  • green

    very informal; broad positive meaning about environmental values

  • renewable

    different meaning — describes energy sources that naturally replenish (sun, wind), not the system as a whole

Antonyms
  • unsustainable

    direct negative — describes practices that deplete resources

  • harmful

    broader; does not imply resource depletion specifically

Grammar Patterns

sustainable + noun (development, energy, agriculture)

be sustainable

environmentally sustainable

Usage Note

This is the more frequent sense in modern English. Very common before nouns: sustainable development, sustainable energy, sustainable food, sustainable living. The adverb environmentally often precedes it for clarity (e.g. environmentally sustainable farming). The rejected lifestyle-only sense from Merriam-Webster is fully covered here.

Common Mistakes

Solar panels are sustainable because they do not pollute the air.
Solar panels provide sustainable energy because sunlight is a renewable resource.
sustainable describes systems that can continue long-term without depleting resources, not just the absence of pollution.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/2

All four words relate to environmental responsibility, but they differ in scope and formality. Sustainable is the broadest and most formal term, describing systems or practices that can continue long-term without depleting natural resources (e.g. sustainable agriculture). Eco-friendly is more informal and focuses on low environmental harm — a product can be eco-friendly without being part of a sustainable system (e.g. eco-friendly cleaning spray). Green is the most casual, used in marketing and everyday speech as a general positive label (e.g. green company, green building). Renewable is narrower and more technical: it applies specifically to energy sources that naturally replenish, like sunlight or wind. A wind farm provides renewable energy, but the whole farm may or may not be sustainable depending on its wider practices. Choose sustainable for formal, systemic contexts; eco-friendly or green for casual product labels; renewable only for energy sources.

sustainable ↗eco-friendly ↗green ↗renewable ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • sources of sustainable energy
  • commitment to sustainable development
  • move towards a sustainable future

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

From Latin sustinēre (sus- 'up from below' + tenēre 'to hold'), meaning 'to hold up, support, endure'. The English verb sustain dates from the 1300s. The adjective sustainable emerged in the 1600s with the general meaning 'capable of being endured or supported'. Its modern environmental sense dates from the 1970s, popularised by the 1987 UN Brundtland Report 'Our Common Future', which defined sustainable development as meeting present needs without compromising future generations.