ongoing
Americanadjective
adjective
-
actually in progress
ongoing projects
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continually moving forward; developing
-
remaining in existence; continuing
Usage
What does ongoing mean? Ongoing means continuing without interruption or a scheduled end. Something that’s described as ongoing has been happening for a while and is expected to continue to happen. Ongoing is an adjective that’s used to describe situations and actions. Similar terms are continuing and in progress. Example: I’m so tired of this ongoing argument with Kathy—no matter what I do, it just never stops.
Etymology
Origin of ongoing
First recorded in 1855–60; on + going, after the verb phrase go on
Explanation
If something is ongoing, it is happening now. If you have an ongoing argument with your neighbor, it means you were arguing before, you’re arguing now, and it looks like you'll be arguing into the future. If something is ongoing, it is currently in action. Often in news reports, reference will be made to an ongoing investigation because the police are in the midst of it at the moment of reporting. Ongoing reports are currently in progress as are ongoing repairs. If your teachers say that there will be ongoing testing throughout the year, you won't be done with it until you get out of school.
Vocabulary lists containing ongoing
Word Generation Weekly - Series 3
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Chapter 17: Imperial China
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Selection Vocabulary 3, Unit 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
With more than 40% of U.S. teenagers reporting ongoing feelings of sadness or hopelessness, one child psychologist believes grandparents may be an important part of the solution.
From Science Daily • Jun. 13, 2026
But a military spokesman said that "ongoing operations have since been further intensified to bring perpetrators to justice and to dismantle all terrorist networks threatening our nation".
From BBC • Jun. 13, 2026
The negotiations for redevelopment of the uninhabited island of Sazan -- once a secret communist military base and currently held by Albania's defence department -- are still ongoing.
From Barron's • Jun. 12, 2026
DBS expects year-to-date investment to contract 2.0% in May from a year earlier, as companies continue to navigate the government’s ongoing crackdown on overcapacity and aggressive price competition.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Most importantly, the conversation at Jefferson’s quarters was merely one part of an ongoing and larger conversation in which the very survival and subsequent shape of the American republic seemed at stake.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
