continuing or enduring without marked change in status or condition or place; "permanent secretary to the president"; "permanent address"; "literature of permanent value"
not capable of being reversed or returned to the original condition; "permanent brain damage"
seemingly without interruption; chiefly restricted to what recurs regularly or frequently in a prolonged and closely spaced series; "the continual banging of the shutters"
`continual' (meaning seemingly uninterrupted) is often used interchangeably with `continuous' (meaning without interruption)