======================= Synonyms of Maintenance ======================= Sustentative (adj) Alimentation, Conservation, Sustentation --------------- http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sustentation Sustentation: 1. maintenance in being or activity; the sustaining of life through vital processes. 2. provision with means or funds for upkeep. 3. means of sustaining life; sustenance. --------------- http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/alimentation Alimentation: 1. nourishment; nutrition. 2. maintenance; support. 3. addition to the volume of a glacial mass, chiefly by the accumulation of ice, snow, or ne've'. Compare ablation (def. 2). SEE BELOW --- http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/ablation Ablation: 1.the removal, esp. of organs, abnormal growths, or harmful substances, from the body by mechanical means, as by surgery. 2.the reduction in volume of glacial ice, snow, or neve by the combined processes of melting, evaporation, and calving. Compare alimentation (def. 3). 3.Aerospace. erosion of the protective outer surface (ablator) of a spacecraft or missile due to the aerodynamic heating caused by travel at hypersonic speed during reentry through the atmosphere. ---