long-lasting
Americanadjective
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enduring or existing for a long period of time.
a long-lasting friendship.
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effective for a relatively long period of time.
a long-lasting pain reliever.
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resisting the effects of wear or use over a long period.
a long-lasting fabric used for work clothes.
Etymology
Origin of long-lasting
First recorded in 1520–30
Explanation
Long-lasting things stick around for a while. If the medicine you're taking for your sore throat has long-lasting side effects, they'll affect you for many weeks or even months. A long-lasting relationship lasts for years, and long-lasting makeup stays on your face all day, until you wash it off at night. This adjective can mean that something is durable or resilient, or in other words that it holds up over time. Other things are simply long-lasting by coincidence — they've just been there for a long time.
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.
She warned of a "severe and long-lasting" consequence.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Such long-lasting events worsen the stress heat puts on people’s bodies, and so does humidity, which can also render some solutions like taking cover in the shade less effective, Turner said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Their findings suggest the non-invasive approach may shift the body's immune response away from long-lasting inflammation and toward tissue repair, offering a potential drug-free strategy for improving healing.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 12, 2026
Whether anyone can conjure words to match, or be as long-lasting and memorable, as Bjorge Lillelien's remain to be seen, but there is every chance they will get a mention amid the action in Miami.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
The long-lasting, crowded populations suggested in Acre are exactly the sort that archaeologists long thought were ecologically impossible.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
