sempiternal

sem·pi·ter·nal
S1E1M3P3I1T1E1R1N1A1L1
UK/ˌsɛm.pɪˈtɜː.nəl/US/ˌsɛm.pɪˈtɝ.nəl/

adjective

Everlasting, eternal.

Similar
datelessendlessinfinite
OriginOld French sempiternel ← Latin sempiternus →
Scrabble 15
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Meanings

adjectivesempiternal (not comparable)
  1. not comparableEverlasting, eternal.

    [I]n filmdom, the sempiternal question continues: Can a male and female actor be just ‘good friends’?

    2008 August 2, Shivangi Singh, “A sneak-peek at ‘just friends’ of filmdom!”, in Zee News
    3 more examples

    The one thing which we seek with insatiable desire is to forget ourselves, to be surprised out of our propriety, to lose our sempiternal memory, and to do something without knowing how or why; in short, to draw a new circle. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.

    1841, R[alph] W[aldo] Emerson, “Essay X. Circles.”, in Essays, Boston, Mass.: James Munroe and Company, →OCLC, page 265

    Why not sempiternal / Thou and I? Our vernal / Brightness keeping, / Time outleaping: / Passed the hodiernal!

    1898, Thomas Hardy, “To Outer Nature”, in Wessex Poems and Other Verses, New York, N.Y.; London: Harper & Brothers, →OCLC, stanza 6, page 151

    As they moved through the shop, which existed in a sempiternal twilight by what light filtered through the grimy windows that had not been washed for years, Rita paused to say, "You said there was some good stuff among this junk. Point me out something you wouldn't be glad to give away to get rid of it."

    1950, Norman Lindsay, Dust or Polish?, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 18
  2. not comparablehuman sciencesHaving infinite temporal duration, rather than outside time and thus lacking temporal duration altogether; everlasting.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectivehaving no known beginning and presumably no end

Similar
datelessendlessinfinite
Also see
datelessendlesseternaleverlastinginfinitetimeless

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Latinsempiternus
  2. Old Frenchsempiternel
  3. Englishsempiternal

From Old French sempiternel, from Medieval Latin sempiternālis, from Latin sempiternus, a contraction of semperæternus, from semper (“always”) + æternus (“eternal”).

More words from Old French, Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Bulgarian вечен, безкраен
  • вечен (večen)seemingly everlasting or eternal
  • безкраен (bezkraen)seemingly everlasting or eternal
Finnish ikiaikainen
  • ikiaikainenseemingly everlasting or eternal
French sempiternel
  • sempiternelseemingly everlasting or eternal
Spanish sempiterno
  • sempiternoseemingly everlasting or eternal

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with sempiternal

journalinternalexternalkerneleternalcolonelmaternalnocturnalfraternalinfernalpaternalvernaldiurnalternalsternalsupernalanteroexternalanterointernalantesternalasternalchondrosternalcoeternalcoracosternalcostosternal
All rhymes →

Anagrams

intersample
Cite this entry
APA

sempiternal. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sempiternal

MLA

“sempiternal.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sempiternal. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sempiternal,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sempiternal.

Source: sempiternal on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.