Part 6: Continuously vs continually: What's the difference? English In A Minute

They look similar, but they have different meanings.

'Continuously' means that something 'doesn't stop or end'.

He spoke continuously for 15 minutes.

That means he spoke for 15 minutes without stopping.

'Continually' is a 'repeated action that happens over a period of time' – so something starts and stops over some time.

I continually tell my dog I love her.

That means it's a repeated event. I say it many times.

Well, that's all for today, but we here at BBC Learning English continually make new videos so keep watching!