forever
[fawr-ev-er, fer-]
- without ever ending; eternally: to last forever.
- continually; incessantly; always: He's forever complaining.
- lasting for an endless period of time: the process of finding a forever home for the dog.
- an endless or seemingly endless period of time: It took them forever to make up their minds.
- forever and a day, eternally; always: They pledged to love each other forever and a day.
Origin of forever
First recorded in 1300–50; orig. phrase for ever
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
forever
- Also: for ever without end; everlastingly; eternally
- at all times; incessantly
- informal for a very long timehe went on speaking forever
- (as object) informal a very long timeit took him forever to reply
- …forever! an exclamation expressing support or loyaltyScotland forever!
usage
Forever and for ever can both be used to say that something is without end. For all other meanings, forever is the preferred form
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for forever and a day
forever
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with forever and a day
forever and a day
1
For a very long time, as in He's been working on that book forever and a day. This hyperbolic expression probably originated as a corruption of the now obsolete for ever and ay. Shakespeare used it in The Taming of the Shrew (4:4): “Farewell for ever and a day.” Today it is mainly a substitute for “very long time.” [c. 1600]
2
Incessantly, ceaselessly, as in Will this racket never end? It's been going on forever and a day. [Colloquial; first half of 1900s]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.