continual

adjective

kən-ˈtin-yü-əl How to pronounce continual (audio)
Definition of continualnext
1
as in continuous
going on and on without any interruptions the castaways hoped that the continual broadcast of the distress signal would eventually attract attention

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in recurrent
occurring or appearing at intervals a history of continual invasions from countries to the west

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word continual different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of continual are constant, continuous, incessant, perennial, and perpetual. While all these words mean "characterized by continued occurrence or recurrence," continual often implies a close prolonged succession or recurrence.

continual showers the whole weekend

In what contexts can constant take the place of continual?

While in some cases nearly identical to continual, constant implies uniform or persistent occurrence or recurrence.

lived in constant pain

When could continuous be used to replace continual?

The meanings of continuous and continual largely overlap; however, continuous usually implies an uninterrupted flow or spatial extension.

football's oldest continuous rivalry

When might incessant be a better fit than continual?

The words incessant and continual are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, incessant implies ceaseless or uninterrupted activity.

annoyed by the incessant quarreling

When is perennial a more appropriate choice than continual?

Although the words perennial and continual have much in common, perennial implies enduring existence often through constant renewal.

a perennial source of controversy

When is it sensible to use perpetual instead of continual?

The synonyms perpetual and continual are sometimes interchangeable, but perpetual suggests unfailing repetition or lasting duration.

a land of perpetual snowfall

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of continual As inflation climbs, continual setbacks to DEI-advancement and the crumbling employment landscape, Blount’s skepticism is unsurprising. —Jasmine Browley, Essence, 10 July 2025 Her efforts to balance Musk’s vision of a free-speech platform with the demands of the advertising community and broader societal concerns over online safety were continual. —Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 9 July 2025 The fear, in fact, is that our continual need to standardize will modernize ourselves out of existence. —Sara Novak, Discover Magazine, 28 June 2025 Hilo, on the other hand, is non-invasive, and can be worn 24/7 as it has been designed for continual tracking for clinical accuracy. —Angelina Villa-Clarke, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for continual
Recent Examples of Synonyms for continual
  1. continuous
  2. recurrent
  3. continued
  4. recurring
  5. continuing
  6. periodic
  7. incessant
  8. nonstop
Adjective
  • Aside from the Yukon 1000, it’s considered the longest kayak and canoe marathon in the world, in which paddlers must travel along the Missouri River for four continuous days.
    — Ramal Nasim Updated July 14, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2025
  • However, the evolving landscape poses new challenges that demand continuous adaptation.
    — Chuck Brooks, Forbes.com, 14 July 2025
Definition of continuous
Adjective
  • About 795,000 occur each year, with 610,000 being first-time strokes and roughly 185,000 recurrent episodes, and in 2022 1 in 6 deaths were as a result of stroke.
    — Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 July 2025
  • The agency said the Kp index could reach nearly four early Friday morning, potentially pulling the northern lights farther south, though NOAA expects no geomagnetic storms or significant transient or recurrent solar winds to disrupt the Earth’s geomagnetic field.
    — Ty Roush, Forbes.com, 17 July 2025
Definition of recurrent
Adjective
  • Follow Andy for continued coverage of the newest fads in the ultra-premium whiskey market, how tariffs would affect prices for bottle importers and why Scotland could soon be running out of peat.
    — Andy Vasoyan, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
  • Israel launched a new ground and air offensive in central Gaza on Monday, pushing into Deir Al Balah with tanks and continued airstrikes following heavy bombardments overnight.
    — Callum Sutherland, Time, 21 July 2025
Definition of continued
Adjective
  • Does this bring him into a more recurring, regular role?
    — Michael Schneider, Variety, 9 May 2025
  • Dobson says the research is coming now that the power engineering community increasingly recognizes cascading failures as a distinct and recurring problem—a concept that still elicited protests from power engineers in the aftermath of the 2003 blackout.
    — IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 14 Aug. 2013
Definition of recurring
Adjective
  • Officials said overnight enforcement will focus on common and continuing offenses such as commercial vehicles parked in residential areas and permit violations.
    — Michelle Deal-Zimmerman, Baltimore Sun, 6 Mar. 2025
  • State of the labor market Initial weekly unemployment insurance claims have held in a fairly steady range around 220,000, though continuing claims earlier in November had hit their highest level in about three years.
    — Jeff Cox, CNBC, 5 Dec. 2024
Definition of continuing
Adjective
  • Rain showers and periodic storms are possible every day through Tuesday before humidity and heat were expected to build again in the Chicago area, the weather service predicted.
    — William Tong, Chicago Tribune, 19 July 2025
  • Businesses should conduct periodic audits of cloud consumption, eliminate redundant services and negotiate better contracts with cloud vendors. 4.
    — Motasem El Bawab, Forbes.com, 18 July 2025
Definition of periodic
Adjective
  • The former tennis player also had a competitive streak and an incessant need to perfect her game that survives in comedy.
    — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 25 July 2025
  • The law—or, more accurately, courts' and radical leftists' interpretation of the law—has resulted in incessant delays for important infrastructure projects, which get bogged down in never-ending red tape.
    — Mike Dunleavy, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 July 2025
Definition of incessant
Adjective
  • There are nonstop flights back to the U.S. from several airports.
    — William P. Barrett, Forbes.com, 19 July 2025
  • The service is part of a United campaign that’s adding 24 nonstop flights to some of the biggest college games of the 2025 season.
    — Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 11 July 2025
Definition of nonstop

Browse Nearby Words

continua
continual
continually
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Continual.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/continual. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on continual

Nglish: Translation of continual for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Using Bullet Points ( • )

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Better Ways to Say 'This Sucks'

8 Words with Fascinating Histories
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All