Perpetuity

 WORD OF THE DAY

perpetuity / noun / per-puh-TOO-uh-tee

Definition
1: eternity
2: the quality or state of being perpetual
3a: the condition of an estate limited so that it will not take effect or vest within the period fixed by law
3b: an estate so limited
4: an annuity payable forever

Examples
"Nearly 120 acres in Bradford County … will be free from development in perpetuity, thanks to a conservation easement acquisition by the North Florida Land Trust."
— The Florida Times-Union, 18 Sept. 2021

The hotel and restaurant will pay 2.5% of gross sales receipts to SITLA in perpetuity, and SITLA provided developers with a $4 million loan to facilitate bringing power, water and sewer utilities to the site.
— Zak Podmore, The Salt Lake Tribune, 9 Oct. 202

Did You Know?
Continual existence—that elusive concept has made perpetuity a favorite term of philosophers and poets for centuries.
The word derives ultimately from the Latin adjective perpetuus ("continual" or "uninterrupted"), which is also the source of our perpetual and perpetuate.
It frequently occurs in the phrase "in perpetuity," which essentially means "forever" or "for an indefinitely long period of time."
Perpetuity also has some specific uses in law. It can refer to an arrangement in a will rendering land forever inalienable (or at least, for a period longer than is set by rules against such arrangements) or to an annuity that is payable forever.