continuity
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
the state of continuing for a long time without being stopped or changed.
the quality of being continuous in space or time; the maintenance of a steady, uninterrupted state.
Simple“The company hired a new CEO to ensure the continuity of its long-term projects.”
In context“The transition between the two administrations was managed carefully to maintain policy continuity and reassure international markets.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
making sure that details like clothes and hair stay the same between different shots in a movie.
the maintenance of consistency between different shots in a film or television production to avoid logical or visual errors.
Simple“There was a continuity error in the scene where the actor's glass was suddenly full again.”
In context“The script supervisor is responsible for monitoring continuity, ensuring that props and costumes remain identical across multiple takes filmed weeks apart.”
Synonyms - 03 C1 Advanced
the history and rules of a story world that writers must follow in sequels or new episodes.
the internal logic and established history of a fictional universe, especially in episodic or serialised media.
Simple“Fans complained when the new movie ignored the continuity of the original books.”
In context“Maintaining narrative continuity becomes increasingly difficult for writers as a franchise expands into multiple spin-offs and prequels.”
- 04 C2 Proficiency
the short announcements or ads shown between different television programmes.
the announcements, advertisements, and promotional material inserted by a broadcaster between scheduled programmes.
Simple“The continuity announcer told us what was coming up next on the channel.”
In context“During the technical failure, the continuity department had to play emergency music until the live broadcast could be restored.”
Synonyms - 05 C1 Advanced
a property of a line or function that has no breaks or jumps.
the property of a function such that a small change in the input results in a small change in the output, without abrupt jumps.
Simple“The teacher explained the continuity of the curve on the graph.”
In context“The theorem requires the assumption of continuity across the entire interval to prove that a solution exists.”
SynonymsAntonymsdiscontinuity
Usage ensure continuity
“This establishes at least 1,000 years of cultural and genetic continuity in the region.”
“Continuity at the top doesn’t come easy in a league such as the NWSL .”
Borrowed from Middle French continuité, from Latin continuitas. By surface analysis, continu(e) + -ity.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.