evergreen

1. adjective /ˈɛvəɡriːn,ˈɛvɚɡrin/

a) Of plants, especially trees, that do not shed their leaves seasonally.

...these three little creeping vines put forth their hands with joy, and spread over rock and hillock and twisted tree-root and mouldering log, in cloaks and scarves and wreaths of tiny evergreen, glossy leaves.

b) Continually fresh or self-renewing; often used metaphorically.

Another change in the news was emphasis on “evergreen” features involving attractive children or animals, parades or fireworks, as well as local developments.

Ant: deciduous

2. noun /ˈɛvəɡriːn,ˈɛvɚɡrin/

a) A tree or shrub that does not shed its leaves or needles seasonally.

The spruce and fir trees crowded to the track on each side to welcome us, the arbor- vitae, with its changing leaves, prompted us to make haste, and the sight of the canoe-birch gave us spirits to do so. Sometimes an evergreen just fallen lay across the track with its rich burden of cones, looking, still, fuller of life than our trees in the most favorable positions.

b) More specifically, a conifer tree.

Deep down in Louisiana, close to New Orleans,

3. verb /ˈɛvəɡriːn,ˈɛvɚɡrin/

a) To extend the term of a patent beyond the normal legal limit, usually through repeated small modifications.

b) To set the repayment rate of a loan at or below the interest rate, so low that the principal will never be repaid.