DictionaryAI

permanent

SayPUR-muh-nuhnt/ˈpɜɹ.mə.nənt/UK/ˈpɜː.mə.nənt/

Noun pluralpermanents

Verbpermanents, permanenting, permanented

5 meanings of permanent

Practice

  1. 1
    lasting foreveradjective
    Lasting for a very long time or forever, not just for a short time.

    Like a tattoo that stays on your skin and does not wash off.

    They finally found a permanent home after years of moving.

    The factory offered her a permanent job instead of a short contract.

  2. 2
    hair treatmentnouncountable
    A chemical treatment that makes hair curly or straight for several months.

    Like pressing a new shape into hair so it holds for a while.

    She booked a permanent at the salon downtown.

    The permanent left her hair curly for months.

    UsagePeople often say perm: get a perm.

    Similarperm

    Note
  3. 3
    curl hairverbdatedtransitive
    To treat someone's hair with chemicals to make it curly or straight.

    In the 1940s, her mother paid a salon to permanent her hair.

    Back then, salons would permanent a client's hair in a single afternoon.

    UsageToday people say perm: she had her hair permed.

    Similarperm, curl

    Note

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    noun
    In some card games, a card or token that stays on the table until something removes it.
  2. 5
    noun
    In math, a number from a square grid, made by adding every product that takes one number from each row and column.

Practice

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Origin

This word comes from Latin permaneo, meaning "I stay through." It came into English through French in the 1400s.

Checked 6 Nov 2026 · 4 facts