Continuum Meaning
/kənˈtɪnjuəm/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA continuous series or whole, no part of which is noticeably different from its adjacent parts, although the ends or extremes of it are very different from each other.
nounA continuous extent.
Sentence Examples
There is no room for a vacuum in a continuum.
We live in a space-time continuum.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The researcher argued that intelligence exists on a ____ rather than as separate types.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
There is no room for a vacuum in a ____.
Word Origin & History
Borrowed from Latin continuum, neuter form of continuus, from contineō (“contain, enclose”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"So, the white line implies Blacklessness and the black background implies Whitelessness – that is, once the white line, a continuum, has emerged from blackness, also a continuum, and the two continua engage in an “inter-penetrative” (Buddhist term) process."
— 2014, Torkild Thellefsen, Bent Sorensen, Charles Sanders Peirce in His Own Words:
"In fact, the influence of signage in a certain area may exist anywhere on a continuum from profoundly effective to utterly trivial or completely insignificant, irrespective of the intent motivating the signs."
— 2019, Li Huang, James Lambert, “Another Arrow for the Quiver: A New Methodology for Multilingual Researchers”, in Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, →DOI, page 11:
"A doorknob of whatever roundish shape is effectively a continuum of levers, with the axis of the latching mechanism—known as the spindle—being the fulcrum about which the turning takes place."
— 2012 March 26, Henry Petroski, “Opening Doors”, in American Scientist, volume 100, number 2, pages 112–3:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The researcher argued that intelligence exists on a ____ rather than as separate types.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
There is no room for a vacuum in a ____.