uphold vs persist

uphold and persist both are verbs.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
uphold	No	No	Yes	No
persist	No	No	Yes	No

As verbs, persist is a hyponym of uphold; that is, persist is a word with a more specific, narrower meaning than uphold:

uphold (verb)	persist (verb)
stand up for; stick up for; of causes, principles, or ideals	be persistent, refuse to stop
support against an opponent	be in a certain place and not leave
keep or maintain in unaltered condition; cause to remain or last	continue to exist