everlasting
UK /ˌɛvəˈlɑːstɪŋ/ · US /ˌɛvəɹˈlæstɪŋ/ adjective, adverb, noun
Forms everlastings ever-lasting
- adjective Lasting or enduring forever; endless, eternal.
- adjective Chiefly of a deity or other supernatural being: having always existed and will continue to exist forever; eternal.
- adjective (philosophy) Synonym of sempiternal (“having infinite temporal duration, rather than outside time and thus lacking temporal duration altogether”).
- adjective Continuing for a long period; eternal. “this everlasting nonsense”
- adjective Happening all the time, especially to a tiresome extent; constant, incessant, unending.
- adjective Of clothing or fabric: lasting a long time; very durable or hard-wearing.
- adjective Having flowers that retain their colour and form when dried.
- adjective Of a plant or plant part: synonym of perennial (“active throughout the year, or having a life cycle of more than two growing seasons”).
- adverb (chiefly US, regional, informal, archaic) Used as an intensifier: extremely, very.
- adverb (obsolete) In an everlasting (adjective sense 1) manner; forever.
- noun (countable, botany) Chiefly with a descriptive word: short for everlasting flower (“any of several plants, chiefly of the family Asteraceae (principally the tribe Gnaphalieae), having flowers that retain their colour and form when dried; also, a flower of such a plant”)
- noun (countable, archaic) Preceded by the: someone or something that lasts forever, or that that has always existed and will continue to exist forever; an eternal, an immortal; specifically (Christianity), God.
- noun Synonym of lasting (“(uncountable) a durable, plain, woven fabric formerly used for making clothes and for the uppers of women's shoes; (countable) a quantity of such fabric”).
Synonyms
sempiternal continual endless eternal immortal incessant infinite interminable never-ending permanent unceasing unintermitted uninterrupted unlimited lasting everlasting flower ageless aeonian eonian perpetual unending arrant complete consummate double-dyed gross perfect pure sodding stark
Antonyms
Etymology
From Middle English ever-lasting (“(adjective) eternal, perpetual; constant; (adverb) eternally; (noun) eternity”), from ever (“at all times, always, constantly; eternally, perpetually; regularly; etc.”) + lasting (“continuing, lasting; eternal; etc.”).
* Ever is derived from Old English ǣfre (“ever”), possibly from ā (“always, ever”) + in fēore (“in life”). Ā is from Proto-West Germanic *aiw (“eternity; long time”), from Proto-Germanic *aiwaz (“long time; eternity”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ey- (“life, vital force; long time; eternity”); and fēore is the dative singular of feorh (“life”), from Proto-West Germanic *ferh (“life; kind of tree”), from Proto-Germanic *ferhwą (“body; life; tree”), probably ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *perkʷ- (“oak tree”) (as the oak represented life and vitality in Germanic mythology).
* Lasting is derived from lasten (“to continue, last; etc.”) + -ing (suffix forming present participle forms of verbs, often used as adjectives)); and lasten from Old English lǣstan (“to follow, pursue; to carry out, perform”), from Proto-West Germanic *laistijan (“to follow, pursue; to carry out, perform”), from Proto-Germanic *laistijaną (“to follow, pursue”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *leys- (“to trace, track”).
By surface analysis, ever (adverb) + lasting (adjective).
Webster’s 1913
- Lasting or enduring forever; exsisting or continuing without end; immoral; eternal. "The Everlasting God." Gen. xx1. 33.
- Continuing indefinitely, or during a long period; perpetual; sometimes used, colloquially, as a strong intensive; as, this everlasting nonsence.
- noun Eternal duration, past of future; eternity.
- noun The Eternal Being; God.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “everlasting”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details