persist

American  

[per-sist, -zist] / pərˈsɪst, -ˈzɪst /

verb (used without object)

• persists,
  present (3rd person singular)
• persisted,
  past participle,  past
• persisting
  present participle

1. to continue steadfastly or firmly in some state, purpose, course of action, or the like, especially in spite of opposition, remonstrance, etc..

   to persist in working for world peace;

   to persist in unpopular political activities.

2. to last or endure tenaciously.

   The legend of King Arthur has persisted for nearly fifteen centuries.

3. to be insistent in a statement, request, question, etc.

   Synonyms:

   insist

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verb (used with object)

• persists,
  present (3rd person singular)
• persisted,
  past participle,  past
• persisting
  present participle

1. Computers. to cause (a record, configuration, value, etc.) to be written to permanent storage by the scripted process that created it, so that it continues to exist in the same state after the script has finished running.

persist British  

/ pəˈsɪst /

verb

1. (often foll by in) to continue steadfastly or obstinately despite opposition or difficulty

2. to continue to exist or occur without interruption

   the rain persisted throughout the night

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Synonym Usage

See continue.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• persister
  noun
• persistiveness
  noun
• nonpersisting
  adjective
• persistive
  adjective
• unpersisting
  adjective
• persistingly
  adverb
• persistively
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• persisting
  present
• persisted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• persist
  simple
• persists
  simple
• have persisted
  perfect
• has persisted
  perfect
• am persisting
  progressive
• are persisting
  progressive
• is persisting
  progressive
• have been persisting
  perfect progressive
• has been persisting
  perfect progressive

Past

• persisted
  simple
• had persisted
  perfect
• was persisting
  progressive
• were persisting
  progressive
• had been persisting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will persist
  simple
• will have persisted
  perfect
• will be persisting
  progressive
• will have been persisting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of persist

First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin persistere, literally, “to stand firm permanently,” equivalent to per- per- ( def. ) + sistere “to (cause to) stand,” akin to stāre “to stand ( def. ) ”

Explanation

When someone persists they keep going or hang on. If you want to finish a marathon, you have to persist and keep running, no matter how many blisters you have. The great Roman poet Ovid once advised: “Endure and persist, this pain will turn good by and by.” As Ovid’s quote hints at, persistence is often associated with hardship and the reward that comes with not backing down. Synonyms include endure, follow through, and persevere, while antonyms include cease and give up.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

persist persists persisted persisting

If high diesel prices persist, companies may be more willing to pass on those higher costs, they said.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

“To help students enroll, persist, and graduate, we must provide the stability and support they need.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026

While tech-heavy advanced economies have fared better in the face of the energy shock, the PMIs showed price pressures persist Asia-wide.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

The Bank of England held interest rates at 3.75% for the sixth time in a row in September, but said they were likely to rise if high energy prices persist.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

The nun would persist, ‘Richard, stand up. Don’t look at the floor. Speak up. Speak to the entire class, not just to me!’

From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez

Hamm said that feeling persists and thrives today.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

A "toxic negativity" persists around whistleblowing with staff discouraged from speaking out, the inquiry said.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

Still, Islamophobia persists in the city where around nine percent of the population is Muslim.

From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026

"This work points to a completely different way of testing their possible role in cosmic history. Their descendants could leave a gravitational-wave imprint that persists all the way to the present-day Universe."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026

“You eat lunch with her every day” Pamela persists.

From "Linked" by Gordon Korman

Rumors have persisted that a compromise candidate could be parachuted into the process at the behest of the powerful five veto-wielding Security Council members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.

From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026

It started a blockade and a devastating air campaign that persisted until a 2022 truce.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026

Other firms have changed their tune on pricing as the war and trade uncertainty have persisted, and as volatile commodity prices have swung back and forth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Weaknesses have persisted since, the Thirwall inquiry said.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

He persisted in mischief in spite of Laila’s scolding, which he never did when Rasheed was away.

From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini

Since the Aug. 19 announcement, the 20-year maturity sector has outperformed both on the curve and in swap spreads, with these effects persisting even as long-end yields have risen above their preannouncement levels, they say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Almost six months into their war, the two sides are locked in a stalemate, with Iran keeping the key Strait of Hormuz shut and Washington persisting with a naval counter-blockade of Iran.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

If Sapiens women had, in fact, regularly entered Neanderthal groups, we would expect to see a recent genetic signal of Sapiens ancestry persisting among the last Neanderthals.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026

With the recent rotation into memory and other semiconductor names, market leadership is increasingly predicated on current supply-and-demand dynamics persisting.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 26, 2026

“You ain’t got a mother somewhere?” says Camel, persisting.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

Related Words

• carry on
• carry over
• continue
• endure
• go on
• linger
• persevere
• prevail
• pursue
• recur
• remain