Dictionary

momentary en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈmoʊmənˌtɛɹi/ (General-American)
• /ˈməʊmənt(ə)ɹi/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From Middle English momentare, from Late Latin mōmentārius (“of brief duration”), from mōmentum (“a short time, an instant”). By surface analysis, moment + -ary.

Meanings

1. Lasting for only a moment.
2. (obsolete) Happening at every moment; perpetual.
3. Ephemeral or relatively short-lived.
   • Tony's face expressed relief, and Nettie sat silent for a moment until the vicar said “It was a generous impulse, but it may have been a momentary one,[…].” 1907 January, Harold Bindloss, chapter 20, in The Dust of Conflict, 1st Canadian edition, Toronto, Ont.: McLeod & Allen, →OCLC:
   • My eyes are bleeding / They've searched for someone else / Addicted to the hunt / And end up somewhere else / Where the expendable souls go / There must be more to this / I'm right in here / Stare through a glass wall / I tell you this my friend / We must be bigger / Than momentary bliss / Don't let the light you see restrain you / Don't put your trust in the dark outside / There will be more than you ever could die for / This momentary bliss is a lie / 'Cause my eyes they are bleeding / I'm off to treasure a brand new emotion / I'm taking off like a demon of fate / I reckon something will see my devotion 2013, “This Momentary Bliss”, in The Living Infinite, performed by Soilwork:
   • Yet oh! what an immense difference did I feel between this impression of a pleasure merely animal, and struck out of the collision of the sexes by a passive bodily effect, from that sweet fury, that rage of active delight which crowns the enjoyments of a mutual love-passion, where two hearts, tenderly and truly united, club to exalt the joy, and give it a spirit and soul that bids defiance to that end which mere momentary desires generally terminate in, when they die of a surfeit of satisfaction! 1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:

Forms

Deriveds

intermomentary · momentariness · momentarily · unmomentary · micromomentary · nonmomentary · momentary god

Translations (53)

cs chvilkový (lasting for only a moment) · sv momentan (lasting for only a moment) · cmn 瞬间 (lasting for only a moment) · bg мигновен (lasting for only a moment) · mi māngina (lasting for only a moment) · sv efemär (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · mi rangitahi (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · de vorübergehend (lasting for only a moment) · hu tünékeny (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · fi hetkellinen (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · pl chwilowy (lasting for only a moment) · gd sealach (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · hy վաղանցիկ (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · sh časovit (lasting for only a moment) · sv flyktig (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · ru сиюмину́тный (lasting for only a moment) · ru момента́льный (lasting for only a moment) · hu röpke (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · fi hetkellinen (lasting for only a moment) · sv ögonblicklig (lasting for only a moment) · bg краткотраен (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · fi lyhytaikainen (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · ru мгнове́нный (lasting for only a moment) · ro momentan (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · ru преходя́щий (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · ru кратковре́менный (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · fr momentané (lasting for only a moment) · eo momenta (lasting for only a moment) · hi क्षणभंगुर (lasting for only a moment) · ru мину́тный (lasting for only a moment) · eo momenta (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · ro temporar (lasting for only a moment) · ro momental (lasting for only a moment) · hu átmeneti (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · hu pillanatnyi (lasting for only a moment) · la mōmentāneus (lasting for only a moment) · mi rangitahi (lasting for only a moment) · ro efemer (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · de vorübergehend (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · bg моментен (lasting for only a moment) · ru сиюмину́тный (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · hy րոպեական (lasting for only a moment) · es momentario (lasting for only a moment) · sv kortlivad (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · sv dagsländelik (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · gd sealach (lasting for only a moment) · hy վայրկենական (lasting for only a moment) · sh trenutan (ephemeral or relatively short-lived) · pt momentâneo (lasting for only a moment) · ro momentan (lasting for only a moment) · it momentaneo (lasting for only a moment) · mi mōngina (lasting for only a moment) · ur لمحاتی (lasting for only a moment)