everlasting

Everlasting is an adjective describing something that lasts for an indefinitely long time or without end. In ordinary usage it can mean extremely long-lasting, as in “an everlasting winter,” or it can refer to an existence with no end, as in theological contexts.

The word combines ever from Old English æfre and lasting from the verb last. The compound appears in Middle English and has continued into modern English with a sense that emphasizes persistence across time.

Usage and connotations: In secular use it often conveys sustained duration or annoyance (as in “an everlasting queue”), sometimes hyperbolic. In religious contexts, everlasting frequently denotes eternity extending beyond the life of the world, such as “everlasting life” or “everlasting punishment,” depending on doctrinal interpretation and translation choices.

Relation to related terms: Eternal, perpetual, immortal, and infinite are near synonyms but carry different nuances. Eternal or timeless usually means outside the flow of time; everlasting emphasizes duration within time. In everyday speech, “everlasting” can be a rhetorical intensifier rather than a precise metaphysical claim.

Cultural references: The term appears in poetry, hymnody, and popular titles, and is used as a metaphor for enduring affection or memory. In literature and film, phrases like “an everlasting love” or “the Everlasting Gobstopper” appear.