永遠(えいえん)

永遠(えいえん) expresses the concept of eternity or forever. It has an emotional, sometimes poetic quality, often appearing in contexts of love, memory, and ideals.

FORMS:

• Noun: 永遠(えいえん) (eternity)
• No-adjective: 永遠(えいえん)の (eternal)
• Adverb: 永遠(えいえん)に (eternally, forever)

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

• 永遠(えいえん)の愛(あい): eternal love
• 永遠(えいえん)の命(いのち): eternal life
• 永遠(えいえん)に忘(わす)れない: will never forget
• 永遠(えいえん)に続(つづ)く: to last forever
• 永遠(えいえん)のテーマ: an eternal/timeless theme

SIMILAR WORDS:

• 永遠(えいえん): eternity (emotional/poetic — love, memory)
• 永久(えいきゅう): permanence (factual/technical — 永久(えいきゅう)凍土(とうど), permafrost)
• ずっと: always, forever (casual everyday word)
• 一生(いっしょう): all one's life, lifetime

NUANCE:
永遠(えいえん) is more literary and emotional than ずっと. Songs, literature, and wedding vows favor 永遠(えいえん), while ずっと is the everyday equivalent.