imperishable

American  

[im-per-i-shuh-buhl] / ɪmˈpɛr ɪ ʃə bəl /

adjective

1. not subject to decay; indestructible; enduring.

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imperishable British  

/ ɪmˈpɛrɪʃəbəl /

adjective

1. not subject to decay or deterioration

   imperishable goods

2. not likely to be forgotten

   imperishable truths

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Other Word Forms

• imperishability noun
• imperishableness noun
• imperishably adverb

Etymology

Origin of imperishable

First recorded in 1640–50; im- ² + perishable

Explanation

Anything imperishable is made to last, like a marble statue or true love. Imperishable things endure. To perish is to die. Things that are imperishable don't. You may have heard of perishable food, the kind that will go bad eventually, like fresh fruit or a ham sandwich. Imperishable foods will always be fine to eat, like a bag of dried beans. There can also be imperishable ideas and beliefs, like imperishable hope or imperishable truth. Certain heroes like James Bond seem to be imperishable, especially in the movie Never Say Die.

Example Sentences

In Mexico, far from the locus of her imperishable pain, Chaarte found moments of peace.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 7, 2024

“Water is life,” they repeat — a simple, imperishable chorus that resounds against the more than two decades of Southern California drought that is steadily building toward epic disaster.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 22, 2022

But Finland kept the most important, most imperishable thing: its full independence as a free, self-determining nation.

From BBC • Mar. 15, 2022

First performed on Broadway in 1957 and brought to the screen four years later, it survives as both a time capsule and a reservoir of imperishable songs.

From New York Times • Dec. 8, 2021

No matter how hard he tried, he never developed any imperishable allegiances to the washed-out, bloodless Marine bases where he had lived for most of his seventeen years.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy