Standard Lemma guide

constancy

noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • General-American: /ˈkɑnstənsi/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈkɒnstənsi/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: K AA1 N S T AH0 N S IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

The quality of being constant; steadiness or faithfulness in action, affections, purpose, etc.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

the quality of being enduring and free from change or variation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • early mariners relied on the constancy of the trade winds

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: stability

Antonyms: inconstancy

Broader terms: changelessness, unchangeability, unchangeableness, unchangingness

Narrower terms: invariance, metastability, monotony

4

noun

Meaning 4

faithfulness and dependability in personal attachments (especially sexual fidelity)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: fidelity, faithfulness

5

noun

Meaning 5

(psychology) the tendency for perceived objects to give rise to very similar perceptual experiences in spite of wide variations in the conditions of observation

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: perceptual constancy

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: perception

Narrower terms: brightness constancy, color constancy, colour constancy, shape constancy, size constancy

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin cōnstantia.

Across languages

Translations

39 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: постоянство (postojanstvo) — quality of being constant
  • Bulgarian: устойчивост (ustojčivost) — quality of being constant
  • Catalan: constància — quality of being constant
  • Chinese Mandarin: 恒心 (héngxīn) — quality of being constant
  • Chinese Mandarin: 坚定不移 (Jiāndìngbùyí) — quality of being constant
  • Finnish: pysyvyys — quality of being constant
  • Finnish: vakaus — quality of being constant
  • Finnish: muuttumattomuus — quality of being constant
  • French: constance — quality of being constant
  • Galician: constancia — quality of being constant
  • German: Konstanz — quality of being constant
  • German: Beständigkeit — quality of being constant
  • Greek: σταθερότητα (statherótita) — quality of being constant
  • Ancient Greek: ἀπλάνεια (apláneia) — quality of being constant
  • Irish: diongbháilteacht — quality of being constant
  • Irish: diongbháil — quality of being constant
  • Irish: seasmhacht — quality of being constant
  • Italian: costanza — quality of being constant
  • Latin: firmitas — quality of being constant
  • Latin: firmitudo — quality of being constant
  • Macedonian: постојаност (postojanost) — quality of being constant
  • Māori: tūmautanga — quality of being constant
  • Portuguese: constância — quality of being constant
  • Russian: постоя́нство (postojánstvo) — quality of being constant
  • Sanskrit: धृति (dhṛti) — quality of being constant
  • Spanish: constancia — quality of being constant
  • Tagalog: ligo — quality of being constant
  • Tagalog: kaliguhan — quality of being constant
  • Welsh: cysondeb — quality of being constant
  • Finnish: ominaisuus — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Galician: constancia — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • German: Ausdauer — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Greek: σταθερότητα (statherótita) — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Latin: firmitas — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Latin: firmitudo — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Latin: firmitas — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Portuguese: constância — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Spanish: constancia — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing
  • Welsh: cysondeb — unchanging quality or characteristic of a person or thing