continuingVS continuous

[Eartha]

And we are delighted to have all of them with us, and we hope this is very much part of a continuing dialogue between the Council on Foreign Relations and between yourselves and others in your country.


Dear all,

What's the difference between "continuing" and "continuous"?
Is "continuous" a substitute here?


Thanks in advance.

 

[mmasny]

Is "continuous" a substitute here?

Yes, it is.
I am not a teacher.

 

[Linguist__]

And we are delighted to have all of them with us, and we hope this is very much part of a continuing dialogue between the Council on Foreign Relations and between yourselves and others in your country.


Dear all,

What's the difference between "continuing" and "continuous"?
Is "continuous" a substitute here?


Thanks in advance.

(Not a teacher)

I think there is a difference. 'Continuing' means 'ongoing' - happening over a period of time. 'Continuous' means 'without stopping' - happening over a period of time, but without any breaks.

If you mean that the dialogue is going to happen without stopping, then 'continuous' is correct. If you mean the dialogue is going to happen for an unknown period of time, but not non-stop, then 'cotinuing' is correct.

 

[bhaisahab]

(Not a teacher)

I think there is a difference. 'Continuing' means 'ongoing' - happening over a period of time. 'Continuous' means 'without stopping' - happening over a period of time, but without any breaks.

If you mean that the dialogue is going to happen without stopping, then 'continuous' is correct. If you mean the dialogue is going to happen for an unknown period of time, but not non-stop, then 'cotinuing' is correct.

I agree.

 

[Barb_D]

I used to struggle with these too. I couldn't find the one usage paragraph that made it clear to me finally, but I did find this: Dictionary of English - continual, continuous, <i>or</i> constant

Something is continual if it happens repeatedly: Our holiday was ruined by the continual rain (it rained often but not all the time). It is continuous if it goes on without a break: Our holiday was ruined by the continuous rain (it rained all the time). If something is constant it happens many times in the same manner: Ruth suffered from constant colds as a child.

 

[kfredson]

I used to struggle with these too. I couldn't find the one usage paragraph that made it clear to me finally, but I did find this: Dictionary of English - continual, continuous, <i>or</i> constant

Something is continual if it happens repeatedly: Our holiday was ruined by the continual rain (it rained often but not all the time). It is continuous if it goes on without a break: Our holiday was ruined by the continuous rain (it rained all the time). If something is constant it happens many times in the same manner: Ruth suffered from constant colds as a child.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Before reading this I would have said that these three words could be used interchangeably in these three sentences, although one or the other might be a more common word in the particular sentence. For instance, I would have thought that I could say that "Our holiday was ruined by continous/constant/continual rain."

Continuing, on the other hand, seems to me to have a slightly different meaning, as the others have noted.

 

[nado92]

(Not a teacher)

I think there is a difference. 'Continuing' means 'ongoing' - happening over a period of time. 'Continuous' means 'without stopping' - happening over a period of time, but without any breaks.

If you mean that the dialogue is going to happen without stopping, then 'continuous' is correct. If you mean the dialogue is going to happen for an unknown period of time, but not non-stop, then 'cotinuing' is correct.

I totally agree with you.
Learning is a continuous process.
Learning is a continuing process.