forever

Meanings

1. 1adverbnot comparable

   For all time to come, without ending.

   Grammar: Goes after the verb or at the end: it will last forever.

   Patterns

   • last forever
   • stay forever

   She promised to remember him forever.

   Nothing in nature lasts forever.

   The artist's work will live forever in the museum.

2. 2adverbnot comparableinformal

   For a very long time, said as an exaggeration.

   Grammar: Informal and often with take: it took forever.

   Patterns

   • take forever
   • wait forever

   The bus took forever to arrive.

   We waited forever at the clinic.

   That movie felt like it went on forever.

3. 3adverbnot comparableinformal

   Again and again, in a way that annoys or never stops.

   Grammar: Used with a continuous verb: he is forever losing his keys.

   Patterns

   • be forever doing something

   My brother is forever losing his phone.

   She is forever complaining about the weather.

   The dog is forever digging holes in the garden.

Common combinations

last forever

No battery lasts forever.

take forever

The download is taking forever.

forever and ever

They said they would be friends forever and ever.

gone forever

The old shop is gone forever.

change forever

The invention changed travel forever.

Synonyms and how they differ

permanently

Permanently is more formal and precise, whereas forever can also be an exaggeration.

eternally

Eternally is more poetic and stresses timelessness.

always

Always means every time, whereas forever means without end.

for good

For good means finally and never again, usually after a decision.

Opposites

Word family

ever adverb

at any time

forevermore adverb

a poetic form meaning from now on

for ever adverb

the British two-word spelling

evergreen adjective

lasting through the year, or always popular

Commonly confused: forever or for ever? forever or always?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “forever”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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