English Online Dictionary. What means eternal? What does eternal mean?
English
Alternative forms
- æternal (chiefly archaic)
- æternall, eternall (obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle English eternal, from Old French eternal, from Late Latin aeternālis, from Latin aeternus (“eternal”), from aevum (“age”). Displaced native Old English ēċe.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ɪˈtɜː.nəl/
- (General American) IPA(key): /ɪˈtɝ.nəl/, /iˈtɝ.nəl/
- Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)nəl
- Hyphenation: eter‧nal
Adjective
eternal (comparative more eternal, superlative most eternal)
- Lasting forever; unending.
- Synonyms: agelong, endless, everlasting, permanent, sempiternal, unending; see also Thesaurus:eternal
- Antonyms: ephemeral, momentary, transient; see also Thesaurus:ephemeral
- (philosophy) Existing outside time; as opposed to sempiternal, existing within time but everlastingly.
- Synonyms: timeless, atemporal; see also Thesaurus:timeless
- (hyperbolic) Constant; perpetual; ceaseless; ever-present.
- (dated) Exceedingly great or bad; used as an intensifier.
- Synonym: awful
Usage notes
May be used postpositively, as in peace eternal, possibly as a result of Latin influence.
Derived terms
Translations
Noun
eternal (plural eternals)
- One who lives forever; an immortal.
References
Anagrams
- enteral, teneral
Catalan
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin aeternālis. First attested in the 14th century.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): (Central, Balearic) [ə.tərˈnal]
- IPA(key): (Valencia) [e.teɾˈnal]
Adjective
eternal m or f (masculine and feminine plural eternals)
- eternal
- Synonym: etern
References
Further reading
- “eternal” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
- “eternal” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “eternal” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
Galician
Etymology
From Latin aeternālis.
Adjective
eternal m or f (plural eternais)
- (formal) eternal
- Synonym: eterno
Further reading
- “eternal”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2024
Middle English
Alternative forms
- eterneel, eternall
Etymology
Borrowed from Old French eternal, eternel, from Latin aeternālis; equivalent to eterne + -al.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɛːtɛrˈnaːl/, /ɛːˈtɛrnal/, /ɛːtɛrˈnɛːl/
Adjective
eternal
- Eternal, permanent; having existed (and existing) forever.
- Endless, unending; lasting forever.
- (rare) Long-lasting; non-ephemeral.
Synonyms
- eterne
Descendants
- English: eternal, tarnal
- Scots: eternal
References
- “ēternā̆l, -ē̆l, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-01-19.
Occitan
Etymology
From Latin aeternālis.
Pronunciation
Adjective
eternal m (feminine singular eternala, masculine plural eternals, feminine plural eternalas)
- eternal
- Synonym: etèrn
Portuguese
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin aeternālis.
Pronunciation
- Hyphenation: e‧ter‧nal
Adjective
eternal m or f (plural eternais, not comparable)
- eternal
- Synonym: eterno
Further reading
- “eternal”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2024
Spanish
Etymology
From Latin aeternālis.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /eteɾˈnal/ [e.t̪eɾˈnal]
- Rhymes: -al
- Syllabification: e‧ter‧nal
Adjective
eternal m or f (masculine and feminine plural eternales)
- eternal
- Synonym: eterno
Further reading
- “eternal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10