per·va·siveBrE [pəˈveɪsɪv] NAmE [pərˈveɪsɪv] adjective existing in all parts of a place or thing; spreading gradually to affect all parts of a place or thing •a pervasive smell of damp •Her influence is all-pervasive (= it affects everyone and everything). •A sense of social change is pervasive in her novels. Derived Words: ↑pervasively▪ ↑pervasiveness
Word Origin: [pervasivepervasivelypervasiveness] mid 18th cent.: from Latin pervas- ‘passed through’ (from the verb pervadere) + ↑-ive.
Example Bank: •the increasingly pervasive subculture in modern society