Persist — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

continue to exist

be persistent, refuse to stop

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/pɚsˈɪst/

🇬🇧British English

/pəsˈɪst/

🇮🇳Indian English

/pəsˈɪst/

2 syllables Say it as /pɚsˈɪst/.

Examples

These stories die hard
The legend of Elvis endures
he persisted to call me every night

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

prevail hold on run endure die hard hang on stay hang in persevere remain

Parts of Speech

verb	continue to exist “These stories die hard”
verb	be persistent, refuse to stop “he persisted to call me every night”
verb	stay behind “The smell stayed in the room”

Word Forms

prevalence	noun	the quality of prevailing generally; being widespread
prevalent	adjective	most frequent or common
persistent	adjective	retained; not shed
diehard	noun	one who adheres to traditional views
perseveration	noun	the tendency for a memory or idea to persist or recur without any apparent stimulus for it
perseverance	noun	the act of persisting or persevering; continuing or repeating behavior
persistency	noun	persistent determination
persistence	noun	the act of persisting or persevering; continuing or repeating behavior

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

bestehen

weiterhin bestehen

🇫🇷French

persister

continuer à exister

🇪🇸Spanish

persistir

seguir existiendo

🇮🇹Italian

perseverare

continuare ad esistere

🇳🇱Dutch

volharden

blijven bestaan

🇵🇹Portuguese

persistir

continuar a existir

🇷🇺Russian

сопротивляться

продолжать существовать

India

🇮🇳Hindi

दृढ़ रहना

अस्तित्व बना रहे

🇧🇩Bengali

অবিরত

অস্তিত্ব অবিরত

🇮🇳Tamil

நிலைத்திருக்கும்

தொடர்ந்து இருக்கும்

🇮🇳Telugu

అంటిపెట్టుకుని ఉంటారు

ఉనికిలో కొనసాగుతుంది

🇮🇳Marathi

टिकून राहणे

अस्तित्वात रहा

🇮🇳Gujarati

ટકી રહેવું

અસ્તિત્વમાં ચાલુ રાખો

🇮🇳Kannada

ನಿರಂತರ

ಅಸ್ತಿತ್ವದಲ್ಲಿ ಮುಂದುವರಿಯುತ್ತದೆ

🇮🇳Malayalam

നിലനിൽക്കുന്നു

നിലനിൽക്കുന്നത് തുടരുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਕਾਇਮ ਰਹਿਣਾ

ਮੌਜੂਦ ਰਹਿਣ ਲਈ ਜਾਰੀ

🇵🇰Urdu

برقرار

موجود رہیں

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

坚持

继续存在

🇯🇵Japanese

持続する

存在し続ける

🇰🇷Korean

지속하다

계속해서 존재해

🇻🇳Vietnamese

kiên trì

tiếp tục tồn tại

🇹🇭Thai

ยังคงอยู่

ยังคงมีอยู่ต่อไป

🇮🇩Indonesian

bertahan

terus ada

🇵🇭Filipino

magpumilit

patuloy na umiral

🇲🇾Malay

berterusan

terus wujud

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

تستمر

الاستمرار في الوجود

🇮🇷Persian

تداوم داشته باشد

🇹🇷Turkish

ısrar etmek

var olmaya devam etmek

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְהַתְמִיד

להמשיך להתקיים

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'persist'?

The primary meaning of 'persist' is 'continue to exist'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'persist' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'persist' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'persist' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'persist' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'persist' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'persist' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'persist' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'persist' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'persist' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'persist' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted