Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Perseverance

Perseverance (pẽr`se*vēr"ans) , noun

[French persévérance, Latin perseverantia.]

1.
The act of persevering; persistence in anything undertaken; continued pursuit or prosecution of any business, or enterprise begun.
The king-becoming graces... perseverance, mercy, lowliness. — Shakespeare
Whose constant perseverance overcame Whate'er his cruel malice could invent. — Milton
2.
Discrimination. [Obsolete] — Sir J. Harrington
3.
(Theology) Continuance in a state of grace until it is succeeded by a state of glory; sometimes called final perseverance, and the perseverance of the saints. See Calvinism.