Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1300-1400
Language: Old French
Origin: Latin aeternus 'eternal'

eternal

 adjective
     
e‧ter‧nal
1 continuing for ever and having no end:
the Christian promise of eternal life
She's an eternal optimist (=she always expects that good things will happen).
2 seeming to continue for ever, especially because of being boring or annoying [= never-ending]:
the eternal arguments between mother and son
3

eternal truths

principles that are always true
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

Browse the dictionary