Persistence

How to spell persistence

11 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce persistence

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does persistence mean?

1. nounThe quality of continuing firmly or steadily despite difficulty, delay, or opposition.

Persistence in a sentence

• Her persistence eventually wore down the bank and the refund was approved.

• Closing the deal took months of quiet persistence and follow-up calls.

Where does persistence come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb persistere, meaning 'to stand firm' or 'to continue steadfastly', formed from per-, meaning 'through' or 'thoroughly', and sistere, meaning 'to take a stand' or 'to cause to stand'. The root sistere is a reduplicated form of stare, 'to stand', and it underlies a whole family of English words including 'insist', 'resist', 'consist', and 'assist'. English picked up the verb 'persist' from French persister in the fifteenth century, and the abstract noun 'persistence' followed soon after to name the quality of carrying on without stopping. The literal idea of standing firmly through difficulty still sits at the heart of the modern meaning. The spelling trap lives in the unstressed middle and the ending: the quiet schwa before the final '-ence' tempts writers toward '-ance', yet the Latin root keeps it firmly '-ence'.

How the word is built

• per- (through, thoroughly)
• sist (from sistere: to stand, take a stand)
• -ence (noun-forming suffix)