Unaltering

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Remaining unchanged or constant in nature, quality, or condition over time
2. Remaining steadfast and invariant in nature, character, or condition despite external influences
3. Not subject to change, maintaining the same state or quality continuously

Etymology: "Unaltering" is a plain formation: the prefix "un-", meaning "not", attached to "altering," the present participle of "alter." Both parts come into English from Latin. "Alter" traces back through Old French "alterer" to Latin "alterare," meaning "to make other," from "alter," "the other (of two)," which gives the word its sense of change into something different. The prefix "un-" is native English and has been productive since Old English, so it can be stacked onto almost any verb or participle. That is why "unaltering" can be built freely from "altering" without needing its own history in the dictionaries. The result is a word whose meaning is almost exactly the sum of its parts: something that does not become other than it is.

Synonyms: unchanging, constant, immutable, invariable, perpetual

Antonyms: variable, changing, mutable, fluctuating, inconstant