adv · 3 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
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/kənˈtɪnjuəsli/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:K AH0 N T IH1 N Y UW0 AH0 S L IY0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adv
Meaning 1
Without pause.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Examples
The river continuously flows to the sea, it will never pause to let us cross on dry land.
She drove continuously for two hours.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
adverb
Meaning 2
at every point
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
The function is continuously differentiable
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
adverb
Meaning 3
with unflagging resolve
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
dance inspires him ceaselessly to strive higher and higher toward the shining pinnacle of perfection that is the goal of every artiste
Etymology tree English continuous Proto-Indo-European *leyg-der. Proto-Germanic *līkąder. Proto-Germanic *-līkaz Proto-Germanic *-ê Proto-Germanic *-līkê Proto-West Germanic *-līkē Old English -līċe Middle English -ly English -ly English continuously From continuous + -ly.
Across languages
Translations
59 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Arabic:
باستمرار
(bistimrār)
— without pause
Armenian:
անդուլ
(andul)
— without pause
Armenian:
անընդհատ
(anəndhat)
— without pause
Armenian:
շարունակ
(šarunak)
— without pause
Armenian:
անընդմեջ
(anəndmeǰ)
— without pause
Assamese:
একেলেথাৰিয়ে
(ekeletharie)
— without pause
Catalan:
contínuament
— without pause
Chinese Mandarin:
不斷 /不断
(bùduàn)
— without pause
Chinese Mandarin:
一直
(yīzhí)
— without pause
Danish:
kontinuerligt
— without pause
Dutch:
continu
— without pause
Esperanto:
senĉese
— without pause
Finnish:
jatkuvasti
— without pause
Finnish:
tauotta
— without pause
French:
continuellement
— without pause
Galician:
continuamente
— without pause
Galician:
continuadamente
— without pause
Galician:
arreo
— without pause
German:
ständig
— without pause
German:
ununterbrochen
— without pause
German:
andauernd
— without pause
German:
kontinuierlich
— without pause
Ancient Greek:
διαμπερές
(diamperés)
— without pause