endure
Americanverb (used with object)
-
endures,
present (3rd person singular)
-
endured,
past participle, past
-
enduring
present participle
-
to hold out against; sustain without impairment or yielding; undergo.
to endure great financial pressures with equanimity.
-
to bear without resistance or with patience; tolerate.
I cannot endure your insults any longer.
-
to admit of; allow; bear.
His poetry is such that it will not endure a superficial reading.
verb (used without object)
-
endures,
present (3rd person singular)
-
endured,
past participle, past
-
enduring
present participle
-
to continue to exist; last.
These words will endure as long as people live who love freedom.
- Synonyms:
- abide
-
to support adverse force or influence of any kind; suffer without yielding; suffer patiently.
Even in the darkest ages humanity has endured.
-
to have or gain continued or lasting acknowledgment or recognition, as of worth, merit or greatness.
His plays have endured for more than three centuries.
verb
-
to undergo (hardship, strain, privation, etc) without yielding; bear
-
(tr) to permit or tolerate
-
(intr) to last or continue to exist
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
enduresimple
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enduressimple
-
have enduredperfect
-
has enduredperfect
-
am enduringprogressive
-
are enduringprogressive
-
is enduringprogressive
-
have been enduringperfect progressive
-
has been enduringperfect progressive
Past
-
enduredsimple
-
had enduredperfect
-
was enduringprogressive
-
were enduringprogressive
-
had been enduringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of endure
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English enduren, from Anglo-French, Old French endurer, from Latin indūrāre “to harden, make lasting,” equivalent to in- in- 2 + dūrāre “to last, be or become hard,” derivative of dūrus “hard”
Explanation
If something endures, it lasts: Beethoven's fame has endured for more than 200 years. But if you endure something, you suffer through it: We endured our teacher's slide shows of her vacation photographs. Notice above that something that endures can be good or bad. Something you endure is always bad. And people are forever talking about what they can't or won't endure, as in "I refuse to endure any more abuse from my neighbors." Endure derives from the Latin indūrāre "to make hard," formed from the prefix in- "against, into" plus dūrus "hard."
Vocabulary lists containing endure
Abraham Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address" (1863)
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List 5
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The Diary of Anne Frank
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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:
A new study suggests that astronauts can adapt remarkably well to months of weightlessness, offering encouraging evidence that humans could endure the long trip to the Red Planet and function under its weaker gravity.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 21, 2026
"We just have to endure and stay strong through this situation, because there is simply no other option."
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves are leading the revamped Lakers roster, but the team is still destined to endure a familiar early postseason exit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026
It’s cringeworthy to watch and heartbreaking to endure.
From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2026
It is the fixity of its text that makes it an immutable mobile, and it is immutable mobiles that are needed if facts are to endure into the post-print age.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
And Donte King, whose family endures racism both subtle and blatant, praises the filmmakers’ attempts to humanize people with contrasting viewpoints, saying he was pleased with getting to tell his story.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
"But it endures anyway as a tradition that forges character, one that sets us apart from other branches of the armed forces."
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
With no solutions in sight, oil producers have little choice but to try to communicate goodwill to the administration—and play the role of whipping boy as the crisis endures, observers say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Sarah says she endures the long travel time as she loves running her shop.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
Dantès endures fourteen desperate years on that curséd isle, waiting for a window of opportunity to escape.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
These sacrifices are real, but they pale in comparison to those endured during World War II.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
We can talk more about the history of our songs, our experiences with each song, every moment we’ve endured as a band,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026
Back in July, when a powerful semiconductor-led momentum trade endured a major crash, investors rotating into other sectors away from the AI trade limited the damage at the index level.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026
"Dominoes is one of the cultural traditions that has endured, that still exists, and that keeps us united," she said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 13, 2026
The gate became a landmark that endured into the twenty-first century, long after the last hog crossed to eternity over the great wooden ramp called the Bridge of Sighs.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Therefore – and this will either save you the trouble of enduring all eight episodes or spoil them – Pamela Voorhees is revealed to be a victim of a patriarchal industrial plot.
From Salon ● Oct. 18, 2026
"It was obvious that they suffer enduring pain for what you did to them," he told Petrie.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
But its enduring feature is that it almost always comes well after the drawbacks and public costs of a new technology have manifested themselves.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026
In a sport full of elaborate buzz cuts and eye-searing bleach jobs, Erling’s striking blond mane, pulled into a tight bun, became one of the enduring images of the tournament.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026
Only infrequently would he come to tea in the Cavendish, since it meant enduring Crick’s booming over the tea room.
From "Double Helix" by James D. Watson
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
