Synonym Chooser

How is the word continual different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of continual are constant, continuous, incessant, perennial, and perpetual. While all these words mean "characterized by continued occurrence or recurrence," continual often implies a close prolonged succession or recurrence.

continual showers the whole weekend

In what contexts can constant take the place of continual?

While in some cases nearly identical to continual, constant implies uniform or persistent occurrence or recurrence.

lived in constant pain

When could continuous be used to replace continual?

The meanings of continuous and continual largely overlap; however, continuous usually implies an uninterrupted flow or spatial extension.

football's oldest continuous rivalry

When might incessant be a better fit than continual?

The words incessant and continual are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, incessant implies ceaseless or uninterrupted activity.

annoyed by the incessant quarreling

When is perennial a more appropriate choice than continual?

Although the words perennial and continual have much in common, perennial implies enduring existence often through constant renewal.

a perennial source of controversy

When is it sensible to use perpetual instead of continual?

The synonyms perpetual and continual are sometimes interchangeable, but perpetual suggests unfailing repetition or lasting duration.

a land of perpetual snowfall

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of continual So began a phase of daily training—and continual anxiety. Literary Hub, 18 June 2025 Still, Syria’s fall might seem unimportant given that Damascus’s large air defense system proved incapable of stopping roughly 14 years of continual Israeli airstrikes, managing to shoot down only one Israeli F-16 in 2018. Sebastien Roblin, Forbes.com, 17 June 2025 And members of the Trump administration have mounted continual attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion policies and used the term as a politically expedient slur to deride Black people. Timothy Welbeck, The Conversation, 16 June 2025 Of course, all this could change with the release of May’s data—and with the continual shakeups in sourcing that will most certainly result as the administration solidifies trade deals in the coming weeks. Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 13 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for continual
Recent Examples of Synonyms for continual
Adjective
  • Amid volatility and continuous disruptions, the greatest threat to any organization is a workforce characterized by stress, negativity, disengagement, and poor health.
    Julian Hayes II, Forbes.com, 21 June 2025
  • This charming coastal town is home to the oldest continuous Independence Day celebration in the country—and this year, Bristol is marking its 240th year doing it big on the Fourth of July.
    Skye Sherman, Travel + Leisure, 20 June 2025
Adjective
  • The symptoms have become so recurrent that the girl’s parents spend sleepless nights taking turns monitoring and caring for her.
    Nicole Acevedo, NBC news, 12 June 2025
  • In some cases, however, pellagra proved to be a recurrent disease, flaring up again once patients returned home and resumed their polenta-heavy diet.
    Asia London Palomba, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 June 2025
Adjective
  • Mixed emotions for the trans community Despite the positive direction, the continued reality of not having a passport isn't lost on those impacted.
    Kathleen Wong, USA Today, 27 June 2025
  • The business requires my role to stay strategic, putting trust in my team and focusing on continued growth for the organization.
    Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025
Adjective
  • Does this bring him into a more recurring, regular role?
    Michael Schneider, Variety, 9 May 2025
  • Dobson says the research is coming now that the power engineering community increasingly recognizes cascading failures as a distinct and recurring problem—a concept that still elicited protests from power engineers in the aftermath of the 2003 blackout.
    IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 14 Aug. 2013
Adjective
  • Officials said overnight enforcement will focus on common and continuing offenses such as commercial vehicles parked in residential areas and permit violations.
    Michelle Deal-Zimmerman, Baltimore Sun, 6 Mar. 2025
  • State of the labor market Initial weekly unemployment insurance claims have held in a fairly steady range around 220,000, though continuing claims earlier in November had hit their highest level in about three years.
    Jeff Cox, CNBC, 5 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • High-criticality or hard-to-access assets often justify remote, real-time solutions (e.g., IoT sensors), while less-critical assets might only need handheld tools or periodic checks.
    Ed Garibian, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025
  • The footage captured by the drones will be also subject to periodic audits.
    Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 24 June 2025
Adjective
  • To the dismay of opposing fans, national media and opponents, those teams backed up their incessant trash talking, celebratory dances and struts by gleefully mollywhopping opponents.
    David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 19 June 2025
  • Despite the incessant claim of a huge mandate, Trump got just 49.8% of the popular vote.
    Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 14 June 2025
Adjective
  • Tales of ballooning costs, nonstop rewrites, off-screen indulgence and on-set clashes swirled around the production, becoming the stuff of Hollywood lore.
    Josh Rottenberg, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2025
  • The Louis will make its debut on Thursday followed by a nonstop 24-hour celebration starting Friday at midnight.
    Denni Hu, Footwear News, 25 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Continual.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/continual. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.

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