immortal
Americanadjective
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not mortal; not liable or subject to death; undying.
our immortal souls.
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remembered or celebrated through all time.
the immortal words of Lincoln.
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not liable to perish or decay; imperishable; everlasting.
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perpetual; lasting; constant.
an immortal enemy.
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of or relating to immortal beings or immortality.
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(of a laboratory-cultured cell line) capable of dividing indefinitely.
adjective
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not subject to death or decay; having perpetual life
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having everlasting fame; remembered throughout time
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everlasting; perpetual; constant
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of or relating to immortal beings or concepts
noun
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an immortal being
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(often plural) a person who is remembered enduringly, esp an author
Dante is one of the immortals
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of immortal
1325–75; Middle English (adj.) < Latin immortālis. See im- 2, mortal
Explanation
Immortal describes what will never die. Do you like vampires? Those blood-suckers are immortal, and will live forever — except, of course, if you drive a stake through their heart. The word immortal can refer a supernatural being who is worshipped by others, or is a divinity or God in human form, like the gods of Greek and Roman mythology. Immortal can also mean "a person whose fame lasts for many years." If you're a sports legend or a well-known author, you may be remembered as an immortal in your field. Immortal comes from the Old French word immortalité, meaning "deathlessness."
Vocabulary lists containing immortal
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" by Jeff Kinney
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act II
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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
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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.
See Examples For:
We see seemingly weightless planes, hovering above immortal bedrock.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
“I’m totally tickled. I’ve just been skipping up and down the street. It’s so delightful,” says the New Yorker, who was nominated for playing immortal island founder Richard Warren the day after his 50th birthday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
For all its immortal ideas and all those outsized news reports of people fainting, “The Exorcist” could’ve faded from memory if so much of what came after didn’t prove to be a cheap imitation.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
There is nothing like the wonder of your first World Cup - the misty-eyed nostalgia of youth, summers that seemed to last forever, the gargantuan stars you believed were immortal.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026
I wouldn’t like to have an immortal monster on my conscience, a monster spreading fear and terror here for all time.
From "Inkheart" by Cornelia Funke
The former Big Red Machine star told Kent to act like he belonged among the rest of baseball’s immortals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026
Alexander Pope’s early 18th-century translation of the story of Odysseus calls the hero Ulysses and favors Roman names for the immortals of Olympus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
An unbeaten 127 runs later, her redemption is now complete and should India triumph on Sunday, she and her team-mates will join the country's cricketing immortals.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2025
Recently, however, Dia has been adding to its pantheon of immortals with the aim of increasing the representation of women and artists of color.
From New York Times ● Feb. 29, 2024
Not a member of a band of immortals from Mount Olympus.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
