persistent

Pronunciation

• IPA: /pəˈsɪstənt/ (UK); /pɚˈsɪstənt/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Latin persistēns (stem persistent-), the present participle of persistō (“to continue steadfastly”) (see persist),^[2][3] or formed from persistence.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Enduring, at first mostly in botany: 1723 in Etymonline;^[2] Merriam-Webster dates the botanical sense, lasting past maturity without falling off, to 1785,^[3] and the OED's first quotation for this zoological and botanical sense is from 1826.^[4]

Semantic evolution

Continuing firmly in a course of action in spite of opposition is by 1830,^[2][4] and existing continuously, enduring, from 1853.^[4] Shakespeare had used persistive.^[2] Later technical uses include a substance that remains in the environment for a long time (from 1952) and, in medicine, persistent vegetative state (from 1972).^[4]

Timeline

• 1723 – enduring (botany).^[2]
• 1830 – persevering despite opposition.^[4][2]
• 1853 – existing continuously.^[4]
• 1972 – persistent vegetative state.^[4]

Modern meaning

Adjective

1. Refusing to give up; persevering obstinately.
2. Repeated or continuing without let-up: persistent questioning.
3. Lasting for a long time in the same state; enduring.
4. (botany) Remaining attached after the normal time of withering, as a calyx.

Word family

• persistently
• nonpersistent

Related words

• persist
• persistence
• persistency
• insist
• resist
• consist

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press