transient

B2 Topic:Time
US /ˈtɹæn.ʃənt/ UK /ˈtɹan.zi.ənt/
noun adj Freq #24236

Meanings

  1. 1
    adj

    Lasting only for a short time; not permanent.

    His happiness was transient and soon turned to worry.

  2. 2
    noun

    A person who stays in a place for only a short time before moving on.

    The cheap motel was mostly used by transients passing through town.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 adj · lasting only for a short... brieffleetingpassingephemeral
2 noun · a person who stays in a... itinerantmigrantdrifter
Word family
Forms transients
Derived forms transiencetransiencytransientlytransientnesstransitoriness

Etymology

From Late Latin transiēnt- (for classical transeunt-), stem of transiēns, present participle of trānsīre (“to go over, to pass”).

Topics

markdown

Send feedback

Optional — only if you'd like a reply.