subsist

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
subsist/səbˈsɪst/

▶verb

• 1 maintain or support oneself, especially at a minimal level.

  ■ archaic provide sustenance for.

• 2 chiefly Law remain in being, force, or effect.

  ■ (subsist in) be attributable to.

– derivatives
subsistent adjective.

– origin C16 (in the sense ‘continue to exist’): from L. subsistere ‘stand firm’.