eternal

adjective

1)

eternal happiness

Syn:

everlasting, never-ending, endless, perpetual, undying, immortal, abiding, permanent, enduring, infinite, boundless, timeless; amaranthine

Ant:

transient

2)

eternal vigilance

Syn:

constant, continual, continuous, perpetual, persistent, sustained, unremitting, relentless, unrelieved, uninterrupted, unbroken, never-ending, nonstop, around/round-the-clock, endless, ceaseless

Ant:

intermittent

••

eternal, endless, everlasting, interminable, never-ending, unending

There are some things in life that seem to exist beyond the boundaries of time. Endless is the most informal and has the broadest scope of all these adjectives. It can mean without end in time (an endless argument) or space (the endless universe), and it implies never stopping, or going on continuously as if in a circle (to consult an endless succession of doctors). Unending is a less formal word used to describe something that endures or has no end, and it can be used either in an approving sense (unending devotion) or a disapproving one (unending conflict). Never-ending is a more emphatic term than unending; it, too, can be used in either a positive or a negative sense (a never-ending delight; a never-ending source of embarrassment). In contrast, interminable is almost always used in a disapproving or negative sense for something that lasts a long time (interminable delays in construction). Everlasting refers to something that will continue to exist once it is created, while eternal implies that it has always existed and will continue to exist in the future. In Christian theology, for example, believers in the eternal God look forward to everlasting life.