
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


Durable describes people or things that last, or remain strong and in good condition over a long period of time. It is often used figuratively, as in "a durable athlete."
// The fabric was durable enough to withstand chewing from the family dog.
// She is one of Hollywood's most durable stars.
See the entry >
"California proposed banning single-use cups at chain restaurants for dine-in customers, building upon its plastic straw ban, mandated phase-out of virgin plastic use, and proposal to ban plastic retail bags. Under SB 1167 ... chain restaurants instead would be required to provide dine-in customers with reusable drinking vessels that are 'a durable cup, mug, or glass containing hot or cold liquids that is cleaned and reused by the food service facility.'" — The Black Chronicle, 21 Feb. 2024
Something durable lasts a long time, so it's apt that durable comes to us (via Anglo-French) from the Latin verb durare, meaning "to last." Other descendants of durare in English include during, endure, and duration, all of which concern things lasting in one way or another. Durable even has a near synonym in the much rarer perdurable, which combines durare with the prefix per- (meaning "throughout") to create a word that can mean "lasting a very long time or indefinitely" or "eternal."
By Merriam-Webster4.5
12381,238 ratings
Durable describes people or things that last, or remain strong and in good condition over a long period of time. It is often used figuratively, as in "a durable athlete."
// The fabric was durable enough to withstand chewing from the family dog.
// She is one of Hollywood's most durable stars.
See the entry >
"California proposed banning single-use cups at chain restaurants for dine-in customers, building upon its plastic straw ban, mandated phase-out of virgin plastic use, and proposal to ban plastic retail bags. Under SB 1167 ... chain restaurants instead would be required to provide dine-in customers with reusable drinking vessels that are 'a durable cup, mug, or glass containing hot or cold liquids that is cleaned and reused by the food service facility.'" — The Black Chronicle, 21 Feb. 2024
Something durable lasts a long time, so it's apt that durable comes to us (via Anglo-French) from the Latin verb durare, meaning "to last." Other descendants of durare in English include during, endure, and duration, all of which concern things lasting in one way or another. Durable even has a near synonym in the much rarer perdurable, which combines durare with the prefix per- (meaning "throughout") to create a word that can mean "lasting a very long time or indefinitely" or "eternal."

11,183 Listeners

2,834 Listeners

1,065 Listeners

849 Listeners

420 Listeners

1,379 Listeners

2,301 Listeners

412 Listeners

474 Listeners

151 Listeners

566 Listeners

4,379 Listeners

12 Listeners

813 Listeners

154 Listeners