perpetuer

Perpetuer is the unaccented spelling of the French verb perpétuer, which means to cause something to last or to carry on over time. In English writing, the direct equivalent is perpetuate; perpetuer appears mainly when French text is cited or when discussing French language and grammar, rather than as a standard English verb.

Etymology and forms: Perpétuer derives from Latin perpetuus, meaning perpetual, and is formed as a regular French -er verb. In French, it is conjugated as perpétuer in the infinitive. The present tense forms are je perpétue, tu perpétues, il perpétue, nous perpétuons, vous perpétuez, ils perpétuent. The past participle is perpétué, and the present participle is perpétuant. When the accent is omitted in ASCII transliteration, the form may appear as perpetuer, though this is not standard in French orthography.

Usage notes: Perpetuer as a standalone English verb is not standard; English writers should use perpetuate. When quoting or discussing French language, retain the correct accent, perpétuer, and the related forms. In non-accented contexts, you may encounter perpetuer as a typographical representation of the French word, but it should be treated as a loanword rather than a separate English term.

See also: perpetuation, perpetuate, perpétuer, perpétuel.