steadfast means fixed or unchanging; steady. It carries an Arena rating of 1800, earned across 7 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, steadfast ranks #545 of 17,113 for Most Elegant Words, #1,587 of 17,123 for Most Malleable Words, #2,340 of 17,130 for Most Ingenious Words, #4,215 of 17,130 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words.
steadfast is pronounced /ˈstɛdfɑːst/.
Why “steadfast” is a great word
Firmly fixed in place, unchanging, or unwavering in purpose, loyalty, or resolve. From Middle English *stedefast*, from Old English *stedefæst*, from Proto-Germanic *stadifastuz*, equivalent to *stead* ("place, position") + *fast* ("firm, fixed"). Unlike "resolute," which burns with the bright flame of a single purpose, or "immovable," which stands like a defiant boulder, "steadfast" describes the quiet, enduring warmth of a hearth that never goes out. It is the lighthouse whose beam sweeps the same arc night after night; the oak whose roots have long since forgotten why they first descended; the hand that remains on the tiller through fog and storm. It is a virtue not of the will's ignition, but of its indefinite maintenance—the slow, sure pulse of constancy in a world that turns too fast.
Etymology
From Middle English stedefast, from Old English stedefæst, from Proto-Germanic *stadifastuz, equivalent to stead (“place; spot; position”) + fast (“firm; fixed”). Cognate with Middle Dutch stedevast (“steadfast”), Icelandic staðfestur (“steadfast”), Danish stedfast (“firmly attached, secured”), Danish stadfæste (“to confirm; ratify”), Norwegian Nynorsk stadfesta (“confirm, ratify; establish”), Swedish stadfästa (“to confirm; establish”).
adj
- Fixed or unchanging; steady.
- Firmly loyal or constant; unswerving.e.g.“steadfast support”
Words closest in meaning
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