Timeless

How to spell timeless

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce timeless

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does timeless mean?

1. adjectiveNot affected by the passage of time; remaining attractive, relevant or valid no matter how much time goes by.

Timeless in a sentence

• The designer favours a timeless style that never looks dated.

• Good tailoring gives a suit a timeless quality that survives decades.

Where does timeless come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This word is a native English compound built from two very old Germanic parts. The first half, 'time', comes from the Old English 'tima', which meant a stretch or point of duration and traces back to a Proto-Germanic root tied to the idea of an interval or a fitting moment. The second half, '-less', comes from the Old English '-leas', meaning 'without' or 'free from', the same suffix that gives us 'hopeless', 'careless' and 'fearless'. Joined together, 'timeless' literally describes something 'without time', and from the late medieval period it carried the sense of being unaffected by the passing of time, untouched by changing fashion or age. The spelling stays helpfully transparent: it is simply 'time' with its silent final 'e' kept intact, plus a single '-less', so there is no doubled letter and no dropped 'e' to trip over.

How the word is built

• time (from Old English tima: a period or point in time)
• -less (Old English -leas: without, free from)