immortal

1 of 2

adjective

im·​mor·​tal (ˌ)i-ˈmȯr-tᵊl How to pronounce immortal (audio)
1
: exempt from death
the immortal gods
2
: exempt from oblivion : imperishable
immortal fame
3
: connected with or relating to immortality
4
: able or tending to divide indefinitely
immortal cell lines produced in culture
immortally adverb

immortal

2 of 2

noun

1
a
: one exempt from death
b
immortals or Immortals plural : the gods of the Greek and Roman pantheon
2
a
: a person whose fame is lasting
b
capitalized : any of the 40 members of the Académie Française

Examples of immortal in a Sentence

Adjective the age-old quest for immortal fame vowed that his hatred of that family was immortal and that someday he'd get his revenge
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Juventus’s decision to appoint Fabio Capello — his mien, even then, that of a stern immortal hewn from basalt — appeared a safe bet, but many of the others were not. Rory Smith, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Steele’s performance as the evil, immortal witch will make your blood run cold, with her steely distance contrasting with the movie’s lush black-and-white cinematography. Katie Rife, EW.com, 12 Mar. 2024 Others signed up to be cryogenically frozen, hoping that their minds could be uploaded into immortal digital beings. Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024 Ace Frehley, founding member and lead guitarist of the immortal foursome KISS, although long single, having departed in 1982, has a new record out, 10,000 Volts, the title a not particularly subtle hint that this is a very heavy rock record, played at full bore. Bob Guccione Jr., SPIN, 7 Mar. 2024 But securing immortal greatness required an all-time performance. Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024 And like Peter Falk’s immortal gumshoe, Elsbeth — who will insert herself unbidden into an investigation — asks a lot of questions, some merely out of curiosity. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024 Durkin had seen Kerry wrestle in person, and the golden-haired Texan seemed immortal in the ring. EW.com, 6 Nov. 2023 By comparison with the immortal gods, even the loftiest mortals are losers in the long run (as Achilles realizes in Hades). Robert Pogue Harrison, The New York Review of Books, 15 Feb. 2024
Noun
Once accorded an honored place in the pantheon of presidential immortals, Wilson is now assailed for suppressing free expression during the Great War and mandating Jim Crow racial segregation in federal hiring. Thomas Doherty, The Conversation, 1 Feb. 2024 And the electorate, even with the additional resources available to us, remains famously cantankerous and opinionated, each of us with a personal interpretation of what defines an immortal. Jim Alexander, Orange County Register, 23 Jan. 2024 Henry Cavill is attached to star in Highlander, a reimagining of the 1986 film of the same name that starred Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery and Clancy Brown as immortals who must battle to collect more power. Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Jan. 2024 Data might be lost in the archive, creating incomplete digital immortals. IEEE Spectrum, 10 Oct. 2023 The Andaman Islanders are not black-skinned elves, immortals who brought their culture in toto from the ur-heimat of Africa, genetic and cultural fossils who have been in total stasis. Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 30 July 2010 All season, Luis Arraez had been in hot pursuit of baseball immortals. Kurt Streeter, New York Times, 27 June 2023 Ringo Starr and Harry Nilsson headline this unhinged British musical, in which Merlin the Magician (Starr, who also produced) tries to convince Nilsson's reluctant immortal to assume the family throne. Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 27 Aug. 2022 This sets the long-haired immortal with bulging biceps on a journey to self-discovery, spurred by the stakes in this installment of Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe: the lives of all of the gods in the universe. Kimi Robinson, The Arizona Republic, 5 July 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'immortal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Latin immortalis, from in- + mortalis mortal

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1616, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of immortal was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near immortal

Cite this Entry

“Immortal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/immortal. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

immortal

1 of 2 adjective
im·​mor·​tal (ˈ)im-ˈȯrt-ᵊl How to pronounce immortal (audio)
: living or lasting forever
immortally adverb

immortal

2 of 2 noun
1
: an immortal being
2
: a person whose fame is lasting
baseball immortals

More from Merriam-Webster on immortal

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!