Etymology Univerbation of for ever, from Middle English for ever, for evere. By surface analysis, for + ever. First attested in the late 14c., and first attested in the late 17c. as one word. Noun first attested in 1858.
1
Duration, Time For all time, for all eternity; for a lifetime; for an infinite amount of time.
I shall love you forever.
Secondly, When a body is once in motion it will continue to move forever, unless something stops it. When a ball is struck on the surface of the earth, the friction of the earth and the resistance of the air soon stop its motion.1839, Denison Olmsted, A Compendium of Astronomy, page 95:
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If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face — for ever.1949, George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four:
She and Serena had been friends forever. Or nearly forever: forty-two years, beginning with Miss Kimmel's first grade.1988, Anne Tyler, chapter 1, in Breathing Lessons:
Anything in the world of transport takes forever to do, and costs far too much.2024 February 7, Lee Waters tells Conrad Landin, “A mission to improve transport for Wales”, in RAIL, number 1002, page 35:
3
Constantly or frequently.
You are forever nagging me.
Early in his boyhood he had learned to form ropes by twisting and tying long grasses together, and with these he was forever tripping Tublat or attempting to hang him from some overhanging branch.1912 October, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “Tarzan of the Apes”, in The All-Story, New York, N.Y.: Frank A. Munsey Co., →OCLC; republished as chapter 5, in Tarzan of the Apes, New York, N.Y.: A[lbert] L[evi] Burt Company, June 1914, →OCLC:
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I'm a B student 'cas I'm forever getting B-, B, and B+.1965 January 7, Lou Sullivan, Diary:
Etymology Univerbation of for ever, from Middle English for ever, for evere. By surface analysis, for + ever. First attested in the late 14c., and first attested in the late 17c. as one word. Noun first attested in 1858.
It's been a fortnight of forevers since the Braves could count on a late-game comeback.2001 September, Michael Knisley, “The Braves' last stand”, in Sporting News, volume 225, number 36, page 12:
In the airport, holiday lovers kiss, mouth forevers, the usual argot betrays you. Desire makes love dull.2007, Ruth O'Callaghan, Where acid has etched:
2
Colloquial, Poetic A mythical time in the future that will never come.
Sure, I'd be happy to meet with you on the 12th of forever.
forever
adj
Etymology Univerbation of for ever, from Middle English for ever, for evere. By surface analysis, for + ever. First attested in the late 14c., and first attested in the late 17c. as one word. Noun first attested in 1858.
It'd be a peaceful life / With a forever wife / And a kid someday1971, Bruce Johnston, "Disney Girls (1957)":
We'll take care of you and help you find a Forever Home.2009, Kathy Kadilak, Tommy Finds His Forever Home, page 3:
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He is a forever friend.2012, Brad Hicks, For Every Fear a Promise, page 96:
Danner posits that the United States has been trapped in a "forever war" by 9/11, and describes a nation that has been altered in fundamental ways by President Bush's having declared a war of choice and without an exit plan, […]2016, Mark Danner, Spiral: Trapped in the Forever War: