- Trending Now: More Trending:
- embolization oleaginous pansexual symbiote charlatan
- ALL
What's Trending Now
More Trending Words
perpetuity was our Word of the Day on 12/18/2015. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Examples of perpetuity in a Sentence
lands that should remain in their wild state in perpetuity
Recent Examples of perpetuity from the Web
-
For $15 million, the city will own the facility in perpetuity.
-
The deed to that portion of land now reads that it be preserved as a bird sanctuary and wildlife habitat in perpetuity.
-
These sections of the deal expire after a few years, though the pact forbids Iran from gaining nuclear weapons in perpetuity.
-
As part of their agreement, the developers granted the public 100 acres of shoreline in perpetuity, to be managed jointly.
-
In most states, a felony arrest is enough to add someone in perpetuity to the state database.
-
Borden’s stepsons, Samuel and Alfred Church, had bought the mansion to be used as the library and wanted it named in perpetuity after their stepfather.
-
But both measures came at a steep cost, contributing mightily to a mushrooming deficit that the Congressional Budget Office projected this week will reach $1 trillion in 2020 and exceed that mark in perpetuity.
-
His antitrust lawsuit, Robertson v. NBA, destroyed the reserve clause that tied a player to an NBA team in perpetuity.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'perpetuity.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
Continual existence—that elusive concept has made perpetuity a favorite term of philosophers and poets for centuries. The word derives ultimately from the Latin adjective perpetuus ("continual" or "uninterrupted"), which is also the source of our perpetual and perpetuate. It frequently occurs in the phrase "in perpetuity," which essentially means "forever" or "for an indefinitely long period of time." Perpetuity also has some specific uses in law. It can refer to an arrangement in a will rendering land forever inalienable (or at least, for a period longer than is set by rules against such arrangements) or to an annuity that is payable forever.
Origin and Etymology of perpetuity
Middle English perpetuite, from Anglo-French perpetuité, from Latin perpetuitat-, perpetuitas, from perpetuus
NEW! Time Traveler
First Known Use: 15th century
in the meaning defined at sense 1
See Words from the same yearperpetuity Synonyms
Synonyms
Near Antonyms
ephemerality, impermanence, temporariness, transience, transitoriness;
Related Words
boundlessness, endlessness, interminableness, limitlessness, permanence, permanency, timelessness;
PERPETUITY Defined for English Language Learners
Definition of perpetuity for English Language Learners
-
: the state of continuing forever or for a very long time
Law Dictionary
legal Definition of perpetuity
plural perpetuities
1
: the quality, state, or duration of being perpetual
- devised to them in perpetuity
2 a
: the condition of a future estate limited in such a way as not to vest within the period fixed by law for the vesting of an estate;
also
: a limitation that gives rise to such a situation
b
: an estate that will not vest within the period fixed by law — see also rule against perpetuities, statutory rule against perpetuities
3
: an annuity payable forever
Learn More about perpetuity
-
See words that rhyme with perpetuity Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for perpetuity Spanish Central: Translation of perpetuity Nglish: Translation of perpetuity for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of perpetuity for Arabic speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up perpetuity? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
