incessant

adjective

in·​ces·​sant (ˌ)in-ˈse-sᵊnt How to pronounce incessant (audio)
: continuing or following without interruption : unceasing
Choose the Right Synonym for incessant

continual, continuous, constant, incessant, perpetual, perennial mean characterized by continued occurrence or recurrence.

continual often implies a close prolonged succession or recurrence.

continual showers the whole weekend

continuous usually implies an uninterrupted flow or spatial extension.

football's oldest continuous rivalry

constant implies uniform or persistent occurrence or recurrence.

lived in constant pain

incessant implies ceaseless or uninterrupted activity.

annoyed by the incessant quarreling

perpetual suggests unfailing repetition or lasting duration.

a land of perpetual snowfall

perennial implies enduring existence often through constant renewal.

a perennial source of controversy

Examples of incessant in a Sentence

Much of the early motor development of the child depends on learning and refining such procedures, through play, imitation, trial and error, and incessant rehearsal. Oliver Sacks, New Yorker, 24 Sept. 2007
Magna Carta also stipulated that the shire courts should meet as royal courts under the itinerant justices more often than twice a year—a change, convenient to the landed classes and their incessant civil actions, that was not implemented because of the cost to the Crown. Norman F. Cantor, Imagining the Law, 1997
Whatever Stalin's ancestry, his biographers, Robert Tucker in particular, have concluded that his unfortunate childhood experiences, including incessant, murderous beatings by his drunken father, were probably what caused his pathological behaviour. Amy Knight, Times Literary Supplement, 26 Apr. 1991
the incessant noise from an outside repair crew was a real distraction during the test
Recent Examples on the Web The operating room would often shake from the incessant bombings, sometimes as frequent as every 30 seconds. Irfan Galaria, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024 After all, who can sleep to the soundtrack of incessant newborn crying? Cheryl Maguire, Washington Post, 24 Feb. 2024 The race was delayed by a day due to the incessant rain that pelted Daytona International Speedway over the weekend. Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 20 Feb. 2024 The incessant buzzing of an Israeli drone fills the room. Raja Abdulrahim, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2024 The incessant gender-tracking among crossword constructors publishing in these and other outlets has been accompanied by diversity initiatives meant to mentor women constructors and foster their talents. Anna Shechtman, The New Yorker, 18 Feb. 2024 His approach to personal publicity is a refreshing counterbalance to our mainstream culture’s uninhibited, incessant over-sharing. Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 15 Feb. 2024 At the same time, Earth’s incessant gravitational tug on the moon adds stress to an already dynamic environment, contributing further to the formation of thrust faults. Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 Feb. 2024 Public health employees and other health care workers have reported being threatened and harassed for doing their jobs in addition to grappling with an incessant workload. Ciara McCarthy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'incessant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English incessaunt, from Late Latin incessant-, incessans, from Latin in- + cessant-, cessans, present participle of cessare to delay — more at cease

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of incessant was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near incessant

Cite this Entry

“Incessant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incessant. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

incessant

adjective
in·​ces·​sant (ˈ)in-ˈses-ᵊnt How to pronounce incessant (audio)
: going on and on : not stopping or letting up
incessantly adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on incessant

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