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

While some artist’s foundations become philanthropic juggernauts (like Warhol’s) or rule-enforcing guardians (Felix Gonzalez-Torres’s) in perpetuity, Holt/Smithson will dissolve in 2038, the year the pair would have turned 100.
— New York Times, 12 Nov. 2021

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.