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13 results for: Continual

Dictionary Entries (4 more entries. View all »)
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)Cite This Source
con·tin·u·al    Audio Help   [kuhn-tin-yoo-uhl] Pronunciation Key
–adjective
1.of regular or frequent recurrence; often repeated; very frequent: continual bus departures.
2.happening without interruption or cessation; continuous in time.
[Origin: 1300–50; < ML continuālis, equiv. to L continu(us) continuous + -ālis -al1; r. ME continuel < MF < L, as above]

—Related forms
con·tin·u·al·i·ty, con·tin·u·al·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. successive, recurrent, repetitive, repetitious. 2. unceasing, ceaseless, incessant, uninterrupted, unremitting, unbroken, permanent, unending.
—Usage note Although usage guides generally advise that continual may be used only to mean “intermittent” and continuous only to mean “uninterrupted,” the words are used interchangeably in all kinds of speech and writing with no distinction in meaning: The President's life is under continual (or continuous) scrutiny. Continuous (or continual) bursts of laughter punctuated her testimony. The adverbs continually and continuously are also used interchangeably. To make a clear distinction between what occurs at short intervals and what proceeds without interruption, writers sometimes use the contrasting terms intermittent (intermittent losses of power during the storm) and uninterrupted (uninterrupted reception during the storm) or similar expressions. Continuous is not interchangeable with continual in the sense of spatial relationship: a continuous (not continual) series of passages.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Thesaurus Entries
  Roget's II: The New ThesaurusCite This Source
Main Entry:  continual
Part of Speech:  adjective
Definition:  Existing or occurring without interruption or end.
Synonyms:  around-the-clock, ceaseless, constant, continuous, endless, eternal, everlasting, incessant, interminable, nonstop, ongoing, perpetual, persistent, relentless, round-the-clock, timeless, unceasing, unending, unfailing, uninterrupted, unremitting
Source:  Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition
by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary.
Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
  Synonym Collection v1.1Cite This Source
Main Entry:  continual
Part of Speech:  adjective
Synonyms:  ceaseless, constant, continuous, endless, enduring, eternal, everlasting, incessant, lasting, perennial, permanent, perpetual, recurrent, unbroken, unceasing, uninterrupted, unremitting, connected, unwaning
Source:  Synonym Collection v1.1
Copyright © 2008 by Lexico Publishing Group, LLC.

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