longstanding
Americanadjective
Etymology
Origin of longstanding
Explanation
Anything longstanding has been around for a long time. If it's a longstanding tradition for your school's senior class to play a prank, that means it was even going on back when your grandfather's class let hundreds of crickets loose in the halls. Humans keeping cats as pets is a longstanding custom, and the habit of cooking food before eating it is also longstanding. You can call yourself a longstanding customer of your town's last remaining video store if you've been going there for years, or a longstanding fan of your favorite tennis player if you've followed her entire career. The adjective longstanding has been around since the early 1800s, so it's longstanding too.
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.
The discovery may help scientists investigate a longstanding puzzle.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 2, 2026
But the EPA’s longstanding techniques already accounted for these uncertainties.
From Slate ● Aug. 2, 2026
Ceuta, along with the nearby Spanish enclave of Melilla, forms the European Union’s only land border with Africa, making it a longstanding flashpoint in debates over migration.
From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026
Such controversies highlight the delicate balance facing brands hoping to attract younger audiences without alienating their core, longstanding customer base.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
I own as I do not, although I stake a claim on a pretty decent fashion sense, on account of my longstanding friendship with a certain party by the name of Joe Bunch.
From "The Misfits" by James Howe
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.
