forever

See also: for ever

English

Alternative forms

• for ever

Etymology

From Middle English for ever, for evere, equivalent to for +‎ ever.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /fəˈɹɛvə(ɹ)/
• (US) IPA^(key): /fəˈɹɛvɚ/, [fəˈɹɛvɚ], [fɚˈɛvɚ], [fɔɹˈɛvɚ]

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛvə(r)

Adverb

forever (not comparable)

1. (duration) For all time, for all eternity; for a lifetime; for an infinite amount of time.

   I shall love you forever.

   • 1839, Denison Olmsted, A Compendium of Astronomy, page 95:

     Secondly, When a body is once in motion it will continue to move forever, unless something stops it. When a ball is struck on the surface of the earth, the friction of the earth and the resistance of the air soon stop its motion.

2. (duration, colloquial, hyperbolic) For a very long time, a seeming eternity.
   • 1988, Anne Tyler, Breathing Lessons, Chapter 1

     She and Serena had been friends forever. Or nearly forever: forty-two years, beginning with Miss Kimmel's first grade.

   We had to wait forever to get inside.

3. (frequency) Constantly or frequently.

   You are forever nagging me.

   • 1912: Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan of the Apes, Chapter 5

     Early in his boyhood he had learned to form ropes by twisting and tying long grasses together, and with these he was forever tripping Tublat or attempting to hang him from some overhanging branch.

Usage notes

• In the United Kingdom and most of the Commonwealth, the spelling for ever may be used instead of forever for the senses "for all time" and "for a long time". In Canada and the United States, generally only forever is used, regardless of sense.

Synonyms

The terms below need to be checked and allocated to the definitions (senses) of the headword above. Each term should appear in the sense for which it is appropriate. Use the templates {{syn|en|...}} or {{ant|en|...}} to add them to the appropriate sense(s).

• always
• continually
• eternally
• evermore
• for good
• forevermore
• for ever more
• forever and a day
• incessantly
• until Kingdom come

Derived terms

• foreverness
• foreverhood
• forever home

Related terms

• everlasting
• every
• everyday
• never
• nevermore
• whatever
• whenever
• whoever

Translations

for all time, for all eternity; for an infinite amount of time

• Arabic: إِلَى اَلْأَبَد‎ (ʾilā l-ʾabad)
• Armenian: ընդմիշտ (hy) (əndmišt), հավետ (hy) (havet)
• Belarusian: назаўжды (nazaŭždy)
• Bulgarian: завинаги (bg) (zavinagi)
• Catalan: per sempre, (Balearic) per a sempre
• Cherokee: ᎢᎪᎯᏛ (i-go-hi-dv), ᎢᎪᎯᏓᏊᎨᏒ (igohidaquugesv)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 永久 (zh) (yǒngjiǔ), 永遠 (zh), 永远 (zh) (yǒngyuǎn)

• Crimean Tatar: ebediyen, ömürlik, bütünley
• Czech: navždy (cs), na věky
• Danish: for altid
• Dutch: eeuwig (nl), (voor) altijd
• Esperanto: ĉiam (eo)
• Finnish: ikuisesti (fi), ikiajoiksi
• French: à jamais (fr), toujours (fr), pour toujours (fr)
• Georgian: მუდამ (mudam), სამუდამოდ (samudamod), მარად (marad)
• German: für immer (de), ewig (de), unaufhörlich (de), auf immer, für eger
• Greek: πάντα (el) (pánta)

  Ancient Greek: ἀεί (aeí)

• Hawaiian: mau loa
• Hebrew: לנצח‎ (lanétsaḥ)
• Hindi: हमेशा के लिए (hameśā ke li'e), कभी के लिए (kabhī ke li'e)
• Hungarian: örökre (hu), örökké (hu), mindörökké
• Icelandic: að eilífu (is)
• Ido: sempre (io), omnatempe (io)
• Irish: go bráth, go deo
• Italian: per sempre

• Japanese: 永久に (ja) (えいきゅうに, eikyū-ni), 永遠に (ja) (えいえんに, eien-ni)
• Kashubian: na wiedno
• Khmer: រហូត (km) (rahoat)
• Korean: 영원히 (ko) (yeongwon-hi) (永遠 (ko) + 히 (ko) (hi))
• Latin: in perpetuum, in omne tempus, perpetuum
• Maltese: għal dejjem
• Manchu: ᡝᠨᡨᡝᡥᡝᠮᡝ (enteheme)
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Navajo: hoolʼáágóó
• Persian: برای همیشه‎ (barâ-ye hamiše)
• Polish: na zawsze (pl), po wsze czasy, na zawżdy
• Portuguese: para sempre (pt)
• Russian: ве́чно (ru) (véčno), всегда́ (ru) (vsegdá), навсегда́ (ru) (navsegdá), наве́ки (ru) (navéki), наве́чно (ru) (navéčno)
• Scottish Gaelic: gu bràth
• Serbo-Croatian: заувек (zauvek)
• Spanish: para siempre
• Swahili: milele (sw)
• Swedish: för alltid, för evigt
• Thai: ตลอดไป (dtà-lòt-bpai), นิรันดร์ (th) (ní-ran)
• Tok Pisin: oltaim
• Turkish: sonsuza kadar, sonsuza dek
• Ukrainian: назавжди (nazávždy, nazavždý), навік (navík), вічно (víčno), назавше (nazavše), навічно (navično), навіки (uk) (naviky)
• Urdu: ہمیشہ کے لئے‎ (hameśā ke li'e)
• Vietnamese: mãi mãi (vi), vĩnh viễn (vi) (永遠)
• West Frisian: ivich
• Yup'ik: akwarpak

(colloquially) for a very long time

• Belarusian: цэлую вечнасць (celuju vječnascʹ)
• Bulgarian: навеки (bg) (naveki)
• Dutch: een eeuwigheid, eeuwen (nl), tijden (nl) pl
• Finnish: ikuisuuden (fi)
• German: ewig (de), für immer (de)

• Polish: całą wieczność
• Russian: це́лую ве́чность (céluju véčnostʹ)
• Swahili: milele (sw)
• Ukrainian: цілу вічність (cilu vičnistʹ)
• West Frisian: ivich

(colloquially) for an excessively long time

• Dutch: eeuwig (nl), eindeloos (nl)
• Finnish: ikuisuuden (fi)
• German: ewig (de), für immer (de)
• Polish: na zawsze (pl)

• Russian: це́лую ве́чность (céluju véčnostʹ)
• Spanish: por siempre
• Swahili: milele (sw)

(colloquially) constantly or frequently

• Dutch: steed, altijd (nl)
• Finnish: aina (fi)
• German: ewig (de), ständig (de), unaufhörlich (de), andauernd (de)
• Hungarian: örökké (hu)
• Polish: cały czas (pl) m

• Russian: ве́чно (ru) (véčno), постоя́нно (ru) (postojánno)
• Spanish: constantemente, sin cesar
• Swahili: milele (sw)
• Swedish: alltid (sv)
• Ukrainian: вічно (vično)

Noun

forever (plural forevers)

1. An extremely long time.

   I haven't seen him in forever!

   • 2001 September, Michael Knisley, “The Braves' last stand”, in Sporting News, volume 225, number 36, page 12:

     It's been a fortnight of forevers since the Braves could count on a late-game comeback.

   • 2007, Ruth O'Callaghan, Where acid has etched

     In the airport, holiday lovers kiss, mouth forevers, the usual argot betrays you. Desire makes love dull.

2. (colloquial) a mythical time in the infinite future that will never come.

   Sure, I'd be happy to meet with you on the 12th of forever.

Translations

extremely long time

• Finnish: ikuisuus (fi)

mythical time in the infinite future

• Finnish: iäisyys (fi)
• Spanish: eternidad (es)

• Swahili: milele (sw)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked

• French: ^{(please verify)} éternellement (fr), ^{(please verify)} toujours (fr)
• Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} לעד‎ (la'ad), ^{(please verify)} לנצח‎ (laneitzach)
• Japanese: ずっと (zutto); 永遠 (eien)
• Korean: 영원히 /jɜŋwənhiː/

• Nauruan: ^{(please verify)} eko dokin
• Scottish Gaelic: ^{(please verify)} gu bràth, ^{(please verify)} gu sìorraidh, ^{(please verify)} gu suthain, ^{(please verify)} gu suthain sìorraidh, ^{(please verify)} a-chaoidh
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} por siempre, ^{(please verify)} para siempre
• Swedish: (för) alltid, (för) evigt