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Definition of "inveterate" []

  • Firmly and long established; deep-rooted: inveterate preferences. (adjective)
  • Persisting in an ingrained habit; habitual: an inveterate liar. See Synonyms at chronic. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "inveterate" in a sentence
  • "Observe how inveterate is the malice that wicked men have towards the righteous, how far it will go, and what a variety of cruelties it will invent and exercise upon those against whom they have no cause of quarrel, except in the matters of their God."
  • "She was one of that peculiar class of females, who, if there is any thing to be said, always claim the privilege of saying it; in other words, an inveterate talker; and who, if we may be allowed the phrase, managed her husband, and all around her, with the length of her tongue."
  • "Only the most inveterate racists would hold that all black women lie about rape, and I hardly think the media are that kind of inveterate racists."