noun · 7 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.
UK:/pəˈsɪst(ə)ns/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -ɪstəns
CMU ARPABET:P ER0 S IH1 S T AH0 N S
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
The property of being persistent.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
You've got to admire her persistence. She's asked him out every day for a month even though she keeps turning him down.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Of data, the property of continuing to exist after the termination of the program.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
The number of times an operation can be iteratively applied to a number before it reaches a permanently constant state.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Topics: mathematics, sciences
Examples
The persistence of the number 39 under the operation of multiplying the digits of the number is three, because 3x9 = 27, 2x7 = 14, and 1x4 = 4, and no further iterations will change the number again.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
the act of persisting or persevering; continuing or repeating behavior
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
his perseveration continued to the point where it was no longer appropriate
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: perseverance, perseveration
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: continuance, continuation
6
noun
Meaning 6
persistent determination
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
