continual

[kuh n-tin-yoo-uh l] /kənˈtɪn yu əl/

adjective

of regular or frequent recurrence; often repeated; very frequent:

continual bus departures.

happening without interruption or cessation; continuous in time.

Origin

1300-50; < Medieval Latin continuālis, equivalent to Latin continu(us) continuous + -ālis -al¹; replacing Middle English continuel < Middle French < Latin, as above

Related forms

continuality, continualness, noun

quasi-continual, adjective

quasi-continually, adverb

uncontinual, adjective

uncontinually, adverb

Can be confused

continual, continuous, intermittent (see usage note at the current entry)

Synonyms

1. successive, recurrent, repetitive, repetitious. 2. unceasing, ceaseless, incessant, uninterrupted, unremitting, unbroken, permanent, unending.

Usage note

Although usage guides generally advise that continual may be used only to mean “intermittent” and continuous only to mean “uninterrupted,” the words are used interchangeably in all kinds of speech and writing with no distinction in meaning: The president's life is under continual (or continuous) scrutiny. Continuous (or continual) bursts of laughter punctuated her testimony. The adverbs continually and continuously are also used interchangeably. To make a clear distinction between what occurs at short intervals and what proceeds without interruption, writers sometimes use the contrasting terms intermittent (intermittent losses of power during the storm) and uninterrupted (uninterrupted reception during the storm) or similar expressions. Continuous is not interchangeable with continual in the sense of spatial relationship: a continuous (not continual) series of passages.

Examples from the web for continual

So on the functional knowledge, there needs to be a process of continual refreshing.
Some key events in a history that has been marked by continual change.
What makes an economy strong is productivity, not a continual population pyramid in a world of finite resources.
Almost continual bloom from early summer through frost add to my plant list.
The continual desire to increase the size of heavy ordnance has become on the part of many nations little else than a mania.
Indecisiveness in name-changing has been a continual irritation.
Ever since, it has suffered from continual droop, punctuated by the occasional outright collapse.
The continual pounding of the waves can cause the top of the arch to fall, leaving nothing but rock columns.
And with a raised planter right outside the kitchen door, you can have a continual supply of salad greens nearly year-round.
The trees tend to bloom almost year-round, so harvest is nearly continual.

British Dictionary definitions for continual

continual

/kənˈtɪnjʊəl/

adjective

recurring frequently, esp at regular intervals

occurring without interruption; continuous in time

Derived Forms

continuality, continualness, noun
continually, adverb

continuous

Word Origin

C14: from Old French continuel, from Latin continuus uninterrupted, from continēre to hold together, contain

Word Origin and History for continual

adj.

early 14c., continuell, from Old French continuel (12c.), from Latin continuus (see continue). That which is continual is that which is either always going on or recurs at short intervals and never comes to an end; that which is continuous is that in which there is no break between the beginning and the end. Related: Continually (c.1300, contynuelliche).