Reader question:

Please explain “here to stay”, as in this: Covid is here to stay.

My comments:

Or COVID-19, otherwise known as the coronavirus. The coronavirus pandemic will continue to exist, perhaps for a long time.

Even permanently. The coronavirus, along with its various and continuing mutations, and perhaps spread. It will perhaps always be around.

In other words, it isn’t going anywhere.

Actually, it is literally going anywhere and everywhere. But idiomatically speaking, it isn’t. In other words, don’t expect things to be normal any time soon. Living with COVID is what people call the new normal.

Yikes.

More on “here to stay”.

Imagine a visiting guest who’s perhaps outlived their welcome. You know, they come from another city to visit. They plan to stay with their host for a week. They like it here so much that they have decided to stay for a month, then a year. Eventually they decide to settle down here. Permanently. They’ve decided to be their host’s guest for now and for the future – till they find a job here and are able to rent or buy their own house, hopefully. They are not going back to whence they came, in other words.

That’s an example of someone who’s “here to stay.”

As an idiom, people or things that are here to stay mean exactly that. They are not moving along. They’re not leaving, not any time soon at any rate. Instead, they are settling down. They will continue to be here for a long time, perhaps permanently.

In other words, forever.

Ah, well, for better or worse.

Here are media examples of “here to stay”:

1. Home Secretary Priti Patel warned the country social distancing is “here to stay”when she joined Lorraine on Good Morning Britain today.

Ms Patel explained that the country recognizes social distancing will be in place for the long term and that public life is going to be very different because of that.

On the day the government’s plans to get people back into work kicked into effect, Ms Patel added the country needed to work together to enable a safe reopening of society.

She said: “I think we all recognize social distancing is here to stay. Our lives are going to be very different. But as we open society up, and that is effectively what we are speaking about now, I think it’s really important.

“People’s lives have been on hold, our children are not getting the education they want, they are not even getting to see their friends. We are not getting to see our friends and family, that’s hard. We’ve got to work together be really responsible, support each other. No one has the answer to any of this, there’s no silver bullet.”

- Social distancing ‘is here to stay’ says Home Secretary Priti Patel, ITV.com, May 13, 2022.

2. Two-time major champion Collin Morikawa is perfectly content with the PGA Tour.

The five-time PGA Tour winner took to social media on Tuesday to shut down any speculation that he might be the next player to abandon his membership with the Tour to join the rival Saudi-backed golf league.

“Last week at my press conference, I said the media loves creating drama. Sure enough, I woke up this morning to everyone thinking I’m next. Not to say I told you so but…I told you so,” Morikawa said, seemingly referring to reports that Brooks Koepka was the latest player to ditch the Tour for LIV Golf’s first U.S.-based tournament next week.

“To state for the record, once again, you all are absolutely wrong. I’ve said it since February at Riviera that I’m here to stay on the PGA Tourand nothing has changed.”

- Collin Morikawa shuts down LIV Golf speculation: ‘I’m here to stay on the PGA Tour’, June 21, 2022.

3. Despite Tyson Fury recently announcing his retirement for the second time in less than four months, boxing fans and media have not been buying that Fury, the current WBC heavyweight champion, would stay away from the ring. After Oleksandr Usyk defeated Anthony Joshua on Saturday to retain the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles, Fury quickly proved why his retirement talk was taken with several heaping spoonfuls of salt.

Fury took to social media to criticize both Usyk and Joshua while announcing he was no longer retired.

“After watching that, the both of them was shite,” Fury said. “It was one of the worst title fights I have ever seen. They were bullshit. Come on. I annihilate both of them on the same night. F---ing shite. Get your f---ing checkbook out, because ‘The Gypsy King’ is here to stay forever.”

Fury first announced his retirement in April, claiming he was walking away from the sport after his knockout victory over Dillian Whyte to retain the WBC, Ring Magazine and lineal heavyweight titles.

He then announced in August that he was attempting to make a bout with former rival Derek Chisora, whom Fury has already beaten twice. When that fight died before negotiations could truly take place, Fury again announced his retirement.

While Fury “officially vacated” his Ring championship – which is not a world title, nor does it carry the value it once did – he did not do the same with his WBC title, only furthering speculation he would return to the ring in the near future.

If the fight between Fury and Usyk were to materialize, it would mark the first four-belt unification fight in heavyweight history.

- Tyson Fury declares he’s ‘here to stay forever,’ calls for heavyweight unification bout with Oleksandr Usyk, CBSSports.com, August 20, 2022.