fleeting en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
- /ˈfliːtɪŋ/
Etymology
From Middle English fleten (“to float”), from Old English flēotan (“to float”), from Proto-Germanic *fleutaną, from Proto-Indo-European *plewd-. By surface analysis, fleet + -ing.
Meanings
-
Passing quickly; of short duration.
Architecture, sculpture, painting are static arts. Even in literature "our flying minds," as George Meredith says, cannot contain protracted description. It is so; for from sequences of words they must assemble all the details in one simultaneous impression. But moments of fleeting beauty too transient to be caught by any means less swift than light itself are registered on the screen.
1931, Martha Kinross, “The Screen — From This Side”, in The Fortnightly, volume 130, page 511:And I am inspired afresh to pursue the stunning beauty of Christ rather than the fleeting beauty of this world.
2010, Leslie Ludy, The Lost Art of True Beauty: The Set-Apart Girl's Guide to Feminine Grace, Harvest House Publishers, published 2010, →ISBN, page 5:For starters, we see examples all the time of some middle-aged men trying to hang onto their own fleeting youth by sporting younger women on their arms.
2008, Barbara L. Bellman, Susan Goldstein, Flirting After Fifty: Lessons for Grown-Up Women on How to Find Love Again, iUniverse, published 2008, →ISBN, page 12:During the fleeting summer months of his field season, when the outer vestiges of winter melted briefly, there were ponds and pools and lakes of water everywhere.
2003, Gabrielle Walker, Snowball Earth: The Story of a Maverick Scientist and His Theory of the Global Catastrophe That Spawned Life As We Know It, Three Rivers Press, →ISBN, pages 34–35:As they passed, accelerating, on to the bridge and felt the first bite of the incline beyond, one had a fleeting glimpse of driver and fireman, illumined as by the fires of hell, the one tugging at the regulator handle, the other shovelling for dear life.
1953 December, Henry Maxwell, “The Folkestone Harbour Branch: Some Evocations”, in Railway Magazine, page 809:
- That which flees, especially quickly; fugitive.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| more fleeting | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| most fleeting | Degree=Sup | lexicographic |
Deriveds
fleeting note · fleetingly · fleetingness · unfleeting
Synonyms
quick · fugacious · fugitive · seasonable · transient · runaway · temporary · volatile · whilend · transitive · evanescent · worldly · deciduous · short-lived · ephemeral · flying · fleeting · transient · transitory · passing · momentary · ephemeral · earthly · instant · fleer · fugacious · brief · perishable · short
Translations (79)
ru скороте́чный (passing quickly) · it fugace (passing quickly) · hu tünékeny (passing quickly) · mi mōngina (passing quickly) · oc fugaç (passing quickly) · hu villám- (passing quickly) · ja 儚い (passing quickly) · ka სწრაფი (passing quickly) · nb flyktig (passing quickly) · fr fugace (passing quickly) · hu futó (passing quickly) · pl przelotny (passing quickly) · sv flyktig (passing quickly) · bg мимолетен (passing quickly) · hu múlékony (passing quickly) · gd fuadain (passing quickly) · uk швидкоплинний (passing quickly) · la fugax (passing quickly) · ka გარდამავალი (passing quickly) · bg преходен (passing quickly) · ro fugaci (passing quickly) · fi haihtuva (passing quickly) · ka წამიერი (passing quickly) · mi māngina (passing quickly) · ca fugaç (passing quickly) · cmn 飛逝的 /飞逝的 (passing quickly) · pt fugaz (passing quickly) · ka დროებითი (passing quickly) · ka სწრაფმავალი (passing quickly) · hu futólagos (passing quickly) · gd siùbhlach (passing quickly) · ka წარმავალი (passing quickly) · de unbeständig (passing quickly) · el εφήμερος (passing quickly) · cmn 短暫的 /短暂的 (passing quickly) · fi ohikiitävä (passing quickly) · el πρόσκαιρος (passing quickly) · es efímero (passing quickly) · hy վաղանցիկ (passing quickly) · fi hetkellinen (passing quickly) · de kurz (passing quickly) · hu elillanó (passing quickly) · cs prchavý (passing quickly) · fa گذرا (passing quickly) · hy կարճատեւ (passing quickly) · is hverfull (passing quickly) · gl fugaz (passing quickly) · hu röpke (passing quickly) · is sem varir augnablik (passing quickly) · pl nikły (passing quickly) · it sfuggente (passing quickly) · hu múló (passing quickly) · he בת חלוף (passing quickly) · de flüchtig (passing quickly) · he בן חלוף (passing quickly) · ka წუთიერი (passing quickly) · es pasajero (passing quickly) · hu elröppenő (passing quickly) · fr passagère (passing quickly) · da flygtig (passing quickly) · es breve (passing quickly) · fr éphémère (passing quickly) · nn flyktig (passing quickly) · nl vluchtig (passing quickly) · ka სწრაფმდინარი (passing quickly) · it fuggevole (passing quickly) · es momentáneo (passing quickly) · de vergänglich (passing quickly) · gd diombuan (passing quickly) · es instantáneo (passing quickly) · ka დრომოკლე (passing quickly) · hy թռուցիկ (passing quickly) · is skammær (passing quickly) · bg бързо преминаващ (passing quickly) · fi katoavainen (passing quickly) · ru мимолётный (passing quickly) · ro fugitiv (passing quickly) · es fugaz (passing quickly) · it sfuggevole (passing quickly)