sempiternal

[ sem-pi-tur-nl ]

See synonyms for sempiternal on Thesaurus.com

adjectiveLiterary.

everlasting; eternal.

Origin of sempiternal

1400–50; late Middle English <Late Latin sempiternālis, equivalent to Latin sempitern(us) everlasting semp(er) always + -i--i- + -ternus suffix of temporal adjectives; see eterne) + -ālis-al¹

Other words from sempiternal

sem·pi·ter·nal·ly, adverb

Words Nearby sempiternal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use sempiternal in a sentence

The sempiternal effluence streams abroad Spreading, wherever charity extends.
The Vision of Purgatory, Complete | Dante Alighieri
For a moment that seemed sempiternal a kind of horrible silence reigned over the room.
The Duke's Motto | Justin Huntly McCarthy
sempiternal, sem-pi-tėr′nal, adj. everlasting: endless—also Semp′itern.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) | Various
Her answer was that the rape was committed in the dortour, where she durst not cry because it was a place of sempiternal silence.
Gargantua and Pantagruel, Complete. | Francois Rabelais
Wherefore he is neither now or then, but sempiternal and for ever.
The Yoga-Vasishtha Maharamayana of Valmiki, vol. 3 (of 4) part 2 (of 2) | Valmiki

British Dictionary definitions for sempiternal

sempiternal

/ (ˌsɛmpɪˈtɜːnəl) /

adjective

literary everlasting; eternal

Origin of sempiternal

C15: from Old French sempiternel, from Late Latin sempiternālis, from Latin sempiternus, from semper always + aeternus eternal

Derived forms of sempiternal

sempiternally, adverb
sempiternity (ˌsɛmpɪˈtɜːnɪtɪ), noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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