self-sustaining
adjective
self-sus·tain·ing
ˌself-sə-ˈstā-niŋ 
1
: maintaining or able to maintain oneself or itself by independent effort
a self-sustaining community
2
: maintaining or able to maintain itself once commenced
a self-sustaining nuclear reaction
Examples of self-sustaining in a Sentence
with its own farm, the estate was largely self-sustaining
Recent Examples on the Web
Your best chance of spotting a whooping crane is along the Texas coast, where the world’s only self-sustaining wild population returns each winter after migrating from Canada.
—
Tiffani Jackson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 June 2026
Feral populations spring up as result of these self-sustaining domestic animals fending for themselves.
—
Madeline Gunderson,
USA Today,
17 June 2026
In total, 81 individuals were captured across the two sites, including juveniles, adult males, and pregnant adult females, which indicated a self-sustaining population.
—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
17 June 2026
Revenue from player transfers, media rights, and matchday income should be self-sustaining.
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Wael Mahdi,
semafor.com,
16 June 2026
While Musk’s core mission has always been to create a self-sustaining city on Mars, Bezos favors the idea of massive, spinning space station in Earth’s orbit.
—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
12 June 2026
The neighborhood was one of the most artistically flush, self-sustaining Black communities on the West Coast until a 1949 urban renewal plan kickstarted the displacement and neglect still going on today.
—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
4 June 2026
As previously reported, Silo is set in a self-sustaining underground city inhabited by a community whose recorded history dates back only 140 years.
—
ArsTechnica,
2 June 2026
Sartori surveys the lagoon weekly by boat for signs of nesting, which would indicate a self-sustaining Venetian colony.
—
ABC News,
30 May 2026
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Tiffani Jackson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 June 2026
Feral populations spring up as result of these self-sustaining domestic animals fending for themselves.
—
Madeline Gunderson,
USA Today,
17 June 2026
In total, 81 individuals were captured across the two sites, including juveniles, adult males, and pregnant adult females, which indicated a self-sustaining population.
—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
17 June 2026
Revenue from player transfers, media rights, and matchday income should be self-sustaining.
—
Wael Mahdi,
semafor.com,
16 June 2026
While Musk’s core mission has always been to create a self-sustaining city on Mars, Bezos favors the idea of massive, spinning space station in Earth’s orbit.
—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
12 June 2026
The neighborhood was one of the most artistically flush, self-sustaining Black communities on the West Coast until a 1949 urban renewal plan kickstarted the displacement and neglect still going on today.
—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
4 June 2026
As previously reported, Silo is set in a self-sustaining underground city inhabited by a community whose recorded history dates back only 140 years.
—
ArsTechnica,
2 June 2026
Sartori surveys the lagoon weekly by boat for signs of nesting, which would indicate a self-sustaining Venetian colony.
—
ABC News,
30 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Self-sustaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-sustaining. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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