What does perpetuating mean?
Perpetuating means causing something to continue indefinitely, usually through a repeated practice, policy, or inherited belief. The word is often used when discussing institutions and social problems: institutions can perpetuate privilege, policies can perpetuate inequality, and stories can perpetuate false beliefs. Its use often carries a critical or cautionary connotation, suggesting that continuation is not inevitable but results from choices that are repeated without being questioned. Perpetuating can also be used more neutrally, as when referring to a tradition or practice that a community deliberately maintains across generations. The related adjective perpetual describes something that lasts forever, while perpetuation names the process of making or keeping something permanent. Together, these forms express the idea that lasting conditions may persist because of continual reinforcement, making the word especially useful in discussions of history, society, culture, and institutional behavior.
To cause something to continue indefinitely or to maintain a condition permanently.
"The organization is working to eliminate the laws that perpetuate discrimination."
Common in formal and analytical prose, especially when describing the continuing effects of policies, institutions, customs, or beliefs.
Serving to make or maintain something permanent or continuing indefinitely.
"The committee criticized the perpetuating influence of wealth on political campaigns."
Less common than the verb form and normally used attributively before a noun.
To put something “in perpetuity” means to establish it forever; the same idea of endless continuation lies at the heart of perpetuating.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does perpetuating come from?
The word comes from Latin perpetuare, meaning “to make perpetual,” which was formed from perpetuus, meaning “continuous” or “uninterrupted.” English borrowed the verb in the late 16th century in the sense of maintaining something continuously or permanently. Its relatives include perpetual, perpetuity, and perpetuation, all of which preserve the Latin idea of endless continuation.
Related word forms
How perpetuating is actually used
The form is most common in formal and analytical contexts. It often describes systems, practices, beliefs, or problems whose persistence results from repeated actions or policies.
Easily confused with perpetuating
Perpetual describes something that continues indefinitely, whereas perpetuating describes the action that causes it to continue.