constant

Word family  noun constant constancy adjective constant adverb constantly

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5++朗文当代英语 5++LDOCE 5++朗文 5++con·stant1 /ˈkɒnstənt $ ˈkɑːn-/ ●●○ S3 W3 AWL adjective  1  CONTINUOUShappening regularly or all the time 持续不断的，经常发生的 SYN continual There was a constant stream of visitors to the house. 参观这幢房子的游客川流不息。 Amy lived in constant fear of being attacked. 埃米一直生活在害怕遭到袭击的恐惧之中。 He kept in constant contact with his family while he was in Australia. 他在澳大利亚时一直和家人保持着联系。2  SAMEstaying the same 始终如一的，恒久不变的 OPP inconstant travelling at a constant speed 以恒定速度行驶3  literaryFAITHFUL loyal and faithful 忠实的，忠诚的 SYN devoted a constant friend 忠实的朋友

Examples from the Corpus

constant• They were firing an almost constant barrage around the perimeter.• I reckoned they would be better off not being involved in our constant battles.• A newborn baby needs constant care and attention.• The refugees lived in constant fear of being attacked.• People under the regime lived in constant fear.• Unemployment is likely to remain more or less constant for the next two years.• It took away the normal drudgery of long flights with little radio contact and constant headings.• The winds are constant in winter.• We should expect to see networks wherever we see constant irregular change, and we do.• We live next door to a busy street and there is always a constant level of noise in the background.• The number of deaths from road accidents has remained constant over the last five years.• Lehman is in constant pain, and suffers from a severe form of arthritis.• He suffered constant pain in the months before his death.• It was important to try to maintain a constant pressure in both the fuel and oxidizer tanks during the flight.• The movements may vary from hardly noticeable choreiform twitches or dystonic posturings to nearly constant restless activity of extremities and trunk.• There it restores constant returns to scale; it does not do so in our case.• She has learned to put up with the constant roar of trucks and cars whizzing by.• The whole process required constant skilled attention.• You save more gas if you drive at a constant speed.• The patient must be kept under constant supervision.• It is important to store wine at a constant temperature.constant stream of• Cook drove clumsily, keeping up a constant stream of chatter.• I always wondered where her constant stream of men came from.• Did he want to work with the same people over a period of time or have a constant stream of new ones?• Her clinic at the John Radcliffe hospital has a constant stream of parents wanting help.• The constant stream of praise burbling in the background of the class swelled into shouts of rapture.• The Count rallied his forces in Bechafen where the constant stream of refugees meant lean rations and poor quarters for all.• A constant stream of spoken advice and directions that this child is less able to comprehend will thereby exaggerate her difficulty.• A constant stream of strangers roamed the neighborhoods.

Related topics: Maths, Numbers

constant2 ●○○ AWL noun [countable]  1. HM technical a number or quantity that never changes 常数，常量，恒量2. formalSAME something that stays the same even though other things change 不变的事；恒定的事物 → variable2

Examples from the Corpus

constant• The important aspect of sample heterogeneity and sampling error is adequately considered and homogeneity constants and nugget effects are discussed.• Through it all, there was one constant.• The only constant linking it all is that it qualifies as, for lack of a better term, neat.• Scientists were satisfied with this figure, and the constant was left undisturbed until 1975.• This constant is important because it fixes the sizes, period and energy of an electron's orbit in an atom.Origin constant1 (1300-1400) Old French Latin, present participle of constare “to stand firm, be constant, cost”, from com- ( → COM-) + stare “to stand”

con·stant1 adjectiveconstant2 nounChineseSyllable  

time or the regularly happening Corpus all

constant

I

con‧stant¹ S3 W3 AC /ˈkɒnstənt $ ˈkɑːn-/ adjective1. happening regularly or all the time
   SYN  continual:
    There was a constant stream of visitors to the house.
    Amy lived in constant fear of being attacked.
    He kept in constant contact with his family while he was in Australia.
2. staying the same
   OPP  inconstant:
    travelling at a constant speed
3. literary loyal and faithful
   SYN  devoted:
    a constant friend
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ continual continuing for a long time without stopping, or happening many times in a way that is annoying or causes problems: There has been a continual improvement in standards. | There were continual interruptions all day. | The couple were having continual arguments and they decided that the best thing to do was to split up.
   ▪ continuous continuing without stopping: a continuous process of change | I've had six continuous hours of meetings. | The machines have remained in continuous service over the last six years without any problem.
   ▪ constant used when saying that something does not stop or always stays the same, or that something keeps happening. Constant is often used about things that are worrying, frightening, or difficult: There is a constant stream of water coming out of the ground. | The plane was traveling at a constant speed of 650 kilometres an hour. | The refugees live in constant fear of attack. | There is always the constant threat of war. | His illness makes life a constant struggle for him and his parents. | The photographs are a constant reminder (=something that makes you keep remembering something) of what happened in Bosnia.
   ▪ uninterrupted [only before noun] continuing for a long time without anything stopping it - used especially when it is important for something to continue: Women with small babies seldom get more than two or three hours of uninterrupted sleep. | The nation has enjoyed nine years of uninterrupted economic growth. | The system helps to maintain an uninterrupted flow of traffic. | an uninterrupted view of the mountains
   ▪ non-stop adjective, adverb continuing for a long time without stopping – used especially about rain, journeys, work, or entertainment: two days of nonstop rain | a nonstop flight to Tokyo | The concert will be seven hours of non-stop entertainment. | They worked non-stop.
   ▪ on-going if work or a situation is on-going, it will continue into the future, though there will be pauses in it: The police said the investigation is on-going. | ongoing negotiations
   ▪ solid [only before noun] used when emphasizing that you do something all through a period of time, with no breaks at all: After eight solid hours of driving, I was exhausted. | It took two solid weeks of work to fix the tunnel.

II

constant² AC noun [countable]1. technical a number or quantity that never changes
2. formal something that stays the same even though other things change
⇨ variable²