soutenu
French, adjective/sut.ny/
soutenu is spelled S-O-U-T-E-N-U (7 letters) and appears 21 times per million words in written French, the 3,602nd most frequent French word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Soutenu is a French adjective meaning “sustained, maintained, concerted” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is also a past participle of soutenir. The French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) defines it as “Caractère constamment élevé dans l’expression orale ou écrite, emprunt de noblesse”.
What does soutenu mean in English?
adjective
- 1
sustained, maintained, concerted
une attention soutenue
- 2
sustained, lasting, enduring
un bonheur soutenu
- 3
high-register; formal
du langage soutenu, la langue soutenue
verb
- 1
past participle of soutenir
Source: English Wiktionary, French section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How French dictionaries define it
adjective: 1. Caractère constamment élevé dans l’expression orale ou écrite, emprunt de noblesse. 2. Se dit d’une couleur franche et solide. 3. Qui se maintient à un niveau élevé.
The definition in the French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), in French.
Source: French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of soutenu
- soutenue feminine
- soutenus masculine plural
- soutenues feminine plural
Source: English Wiktionary and French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce soutenu?
- /sut.ny/
- /su.tə.ny/
- \sut.ny\
Sources: English Wiktionary, French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to soutenu
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is soutenu in French?
soutenu appears 21 times per million words in written French.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).