持续(chí xù) - to continue, to last, to be sustained in Mandarin

持续 (chí xù) describes something going on without a break: rain, a meeting, a war, a rise in prices. It leans slightly formal and is very common in news writing, weather reports and business talk.

The subject is normally the event itself rather than a person. 雨持续了三天 is natural; a person is far more likely to take 坚持 (to persevere) or 继续 (to carry on). 持续 can also sit in front of a noun with 的: 持续的压力, sustained pressure.

Watch the difference from 继续. 继续 means resume or carry on after a point, often after a pause, and it happily takes an object: 继续说. 持续 is about duration with no interruption and rarely takes an object at all. If a colleague stops mid sentence, you say 继续, never 持续.