continual

English

Alternative forms

• continuall (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English continuel, from Old French continuel, formed from Latin continuus (“continuous”) with the suffix -el.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kənˈtɪnjuəl/, /kənˈtɪnjəl/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: con‧tin‧u‧al, con‧tin‧ual

Adjective

continual (not comparable)

1. Recurring in steady, rapid succession.
   • 2022 January 12, Paul Bigland, “Fab Four: the nation's finest stations: Wakefield Kirkgate”, in RAIL, number 948, page 28:

     The history of this station is one of continual rebuilding.

2. (proscribed) Seemingly continuous; appearing to have no end or interruption.
3. (proscribed) Forming a continuous series.

Usage notes

In careful usage, continual refers to repeated actions “continual objections”, while continuous refers to uninterrupted actions or objects “continuous flow”, “played music continuously from dusk to dawn”. However, this distinction is not observed in informal usage, a noted example being the magic spell name “continual light” (unbroken light), in the game Dungeons & Dragons.

Related terms

• continuance
• continuation
• continue
• continuous
• continuum

Translations

References

Further reading

• “continual”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “continual”, in The Century Dictionary , New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• inoculant