mo ‧ men ‧ ta ‧ ry /ˈməʊmənt ə ri $ ˈmoʊmənteri/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ moment , ↑ momentum ; adjective : ↑ momentary , ↑ momentous ; adverb : ↑ momentarily ]
continuing for a very short time SYN brief :
There was a momentary pause.
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THESAURUS
■ time
▪ short not long:
I lived in Tokyo for a short time.
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Smokers have a shorter life expectancy than non-smokers.
▪ brief especially written lasting only for a short time. Brief is more formal than short , and is used especially in written English:
The President will make a brief visit to Seattle today.
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He coached Hingis for a brief period in the 1990s.
▪ quick [only before noun] taking a short time to do something:
I had a quick look at the map.
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He had a quick shower and then went out.
▪ short-lived lasting only for a short time – used especially when someone wishes that a good situation had been able to last for longer:
short-lived success
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The ceasefire was short-lived.
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a short-lived romance
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short-lived optimism about the economy
▪ fleeting lasting only for an extremely short time – used especially when someone wishes that something had been able to last for longer:
a fleeting visit
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a fleeting smile
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She caught a fleeting glimpse of him.
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a fleeting moment of happiness
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a fleeting thought
▪ momentary lasting for a very short time – used especially about feelings or pauses:
There was a momentary pause in the conversation.
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The momentary panic ended when he found his two-year-old son waiting happily outside the store.
▪ passing [only before noun] lasting only for a short time – used especially when people are only interested in something or mention something for a short time:
passing fashions
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He made only a passing reference to war.
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It’s just a passing phase (=it will end soon) .
▪ ephemeral formal lasting only for a short time, and ending quickly like everything else in this world:
Beauty is ephemeral.
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the ephemeral nature of our existence
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His wealth proved to be ephemeral.