¹ephemeral

adjective ephem·er·al \i-ˈfem-rəl, -ˈfēm-; -ˈfe-mə-, -ˈfē-\

: lasting a very short time

Full Definition of EPHEMERAL

: lasting one day only <an ephemeral fever>

: lasting a very short time <ephemeral pleasures>

— ephem·er·al·ly \-rə-lē\ adverb

See ephemeral defined for English-language learners

See ephemeral defined for kids

Examples of EPHEMERAL

… several rather inflated pages of material about an ephemeral love affair Fitzgerald allegedly had with an English woman named Bijou … —Joyce Carol Oates, Times Literary Supplement, 5 Jan. 1996
As a consequence North Africa was easily reconquered by the Byzantine emperor in the 530s, and the Vandals' influence on North African development was ephemeral and negligible. —Norman F. Cantor, The Civilization of the Middle Ages, 1993
This accounts for the peculiar sense most observers have that the ephemeral, sensationalist, polymorphous, magpie popular culture of the United States is at bottom remarkably conservative … —Louis Menand, Harper's, March 1993
[+]more [-]hide

Origin of EPHEMERAL

Greek ephēmeros lasting a day, daily, from epi- + hēmera day

First Known Use: 1576

Related to EPHEMERAL

Synonyms: brief, deciduous, momentary, evanescent, flash, fleeting, fugacious, fugitive, impermanent, passing, short-lived, temporary, transient, transitory

Antonyms: ceaseless, dateless, deathless, endless, enduring, eternal, everlasting, immortal, lasting, long-lived, permanent, perpetual, timeless, undying, unending

Synonym Discussion of EPHEMERAL

transient, transitory, ephemeral, momentary, fugitive, fleeting, evanescent mean lasting or staying only a short time. transient applies to what is actually short in its duration or stay <a hotel catering primarily to transient guests>. transitory applies to what is by its nature or essence bound to change, pass, or come to an end <fame in the movies is transitory>. ephemeral implies striking brevity of life or duration <many slang words are ephemeral>. momentary suggests coming and going quickly and therefore being merely a brief interruption of a more enduring state <my feelings of guilt were only momentary>. fugitive and fleeting imply passing so quickly as to make apprehending difficult <let a fugitive smile flit across his face> <fleeting moments of joy>. evanescent suggests a quick vanishing and an airy or fragile quality <the story has an evanescent touch of whimsy that is lost in translation>.