perpetual

per·pet·u·al

adjective \pər-ˈpe-chə-wəl, -chəl; -ˈpech-wəl\

Definition of PERPETUAL

1

a : continuing forever : everlasting <perpetual motion>

b (1) : valid for all time <a perpetual right> (2) : holding (as an office) for life or for an unlimited time

2

: occurring continually : indefinitely long-continued <perpetual problems>

3

: blooming continuously throughout the season

— per·pet·u·al·ly adverb

Examples of PERPETUAL

1. The region is in a state of perpetual war.
2. He seems to have a perpetual grin on his face.
3. the perpetual demands of parenthood
4. As always, I was struck by how the core values of the military—service and discipline, both physical and intellectual—are so different from the perpetual American Mardi Gras. —Joe Klein, Time, 29 Aug. 2005
5. Because Hunter had been a perpetual Peter Pan, accepting the bleak reality of his death came hard. —Douglas Brinkley, Rolling Stone, 22 Sept. 2005
6. He's addicted to the perpetual flux of the information networks. He craves his next data fix. He's a speed freak, an info junkie. —David Brooks, Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2001
7. Only after I had built to the emotional peroration culminating in the word “astonishing” was I at last sufficiently unastonished by the force of my feelings to be able to put together a couple of hours of sleep—or something resembling sleep, for, even half out of it, I was a biography in perpetual motion, memory to the marrow of my bones. —Philip Roth, American Pastoral, 1997

Origin of PERPETUAL

Middle English perpetuel, from Anglo-French, from Latin perpetuus uninterrupted, from per- through + petere to go to — more at feather

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to PERPETUAL

Synonyms

ceaseless, continual, continued, continuing, incessant, nonstop, continuous, running, unbroken, unceasing, uninterrupted, unremitting

Antonyms

discontinuous, noncontinuous

Related Words

dateless, deathless, endless, eternal, everlasting, immortal, interminable, permanent, undying, unending; changeless, constant, stable, steady, unchanging, unvarying; durable, enduring, lasting, persistent; imperishable, indestructible

Near Antonyms

intermittent, periodic, periodical, recurrent, recurring; alternate, alternating, cyclic (or cyclical), rhythmic (or rhythmical), seasonal, serial; erratic, fitful, irregular, occasional, spasmodic, sporadic, spotty, unsteady

See Synonym Discussion at continual

Other Seed Plant Terms

aubergine, box, bramble, briar, composite, pulse, trefoil