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Substantial vs Continuous - What's the difference?

substantial | continuous |

As adjectives the difference between substantial and continuous

is that substantial is having to substance; actually existing; real; as, substantial life while continuous is without break, cessation, or interruption; without intervening time.

As a noun substantial

is anything having substance; an essential part.

substantial

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Having to substance; actually existing; real; as, substantial life.
  • Not seeming or imaginary; not illusive; real; solid; true; veritable.
  • * "to do some substantial good, is the compensation for much incidental imperfection" - Cardinal Newman, The Rise and Progress of Universities
  • Corporeal; material; firm.
  • Having good substance; strong; stout; solid; firm; as, substantial cloth; a substantial fence or wall.
  • possessed of goods or an estate; moderately wealthy; responsible; as, a substantial freeholder.
  • Large in size, quantity, or value; as, a substantial amount of money; vast
  • Most important; essential.
  • Ample or full.
  • A substantial amount of people in this buliding
  • Significantly great.
  • Derived terms

    * consubstantial * insubstantial * substantiality * substantially * substantialness

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Anything having substance; an essential part.
  • continuous

    English

    Adjective

    (-)
  • Without break, cessation, or interruption; without intervening time.
  • a continuous current of electricity
  • * 1847 , , Ticknor and Fields (1854), page 90:
  • he can hear its continuous murmur
  • Without intervening space; continued; protracted; extended.
  • a continuous line of railroad
  • (botany) Not deviating or varying from uniformity; not interrupted; not joined or articulated.
  • (analysis, of a function) Such that, for every x'' in the domain, for each small open interval ''D'' about ''f''(''x''), there's an interval containing ''x'' whose image is in ''D .
  • (mathematics, more generally, of a function) Such that each open set in the range has an open preimage.
  • Each continuous function from the real line to the rationals is constant, since the rationals are totally disconnected.
  • (grammar) Expressing an ongoing action or state.
  • Usage notes

    *

    Synonyms

    * (without break, cessation, or interruption in time''): constant, continual (''but see usage notes above ), incessant, never-ending, ongoing, unbroken, unceasing, unending, uninterrupted * (without break, cessation, or interruption in space ): connected, unbroken * See also

    Antonyms

    * (without break, cessation, or interruption in time ): broken, discontinuous, discrete, intermittent, interrupted * (without break, cessation, or interruption in space ): broken, disconnected, disjoint, unbroken * (in mathematical analysis ): discontinuous, stepwise

    Derived terms

    * continuous brake * continuous impost * continuously * continuousness (in mathematics) * continuous distribution * continuous function * continuous group * continuous line illusion * continuous map * continuous mapping theorem * continuous space * continuous vector bundle * continuously differentiable function * uniformly continuous

    See also

    * constant * contiguous

    References