sist

stand; stand firm

Spelled sist · sistere 'cause to stand, take a stand'

Latin sistere meant 'stand': persist keeps standing, insist stands on a point, and assist stands beside someone.

Words built from it

persist — continue despite difficulty or opposition
per- (continuously) + sist (stand)
insist — firmly demand or maintain something
in- (on) + sist (stand)
resistance — opposition to a force, demand, or change
re- (against) + sist (stand) + -ance (state or action)
assist — help someone
as- (beside; form of ad-) + sist (stand)
consist — be made up of specified parts
con- (together) + sist (stand)
subsist — stay alive, especially with limited food or resources
sub- (under) + sist (stand)
desist — stop doing something
de- (away) + sist (stand)

sister — Contains sist, but comes from Old English sweostor, the Germanic word for a female sibling, not Latin sistere (stand, set).