evanescence

American  

[ev-uh-nes-uhns] / ˌɛv əˈnɛs əns /

noun

1. the quality of being fleeting or vanishing quickly; impermanence.

   the evanescence of dreams.

2. the act or fact of vanishing quickly.

   The target audience is left only with the dominant message after the evanescence of the advertisement.

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Etymology

Origin of evanescence

evanesc(ent) ( def. ) + -ence ( def. )

Explanation

After you lose a loved one, often you're gripped with a fear of evanescence, or the rapid fading from sight or memory of that person. Evanescence comes from the Latin evanescere meaning "disappear, vanish." Something that possesses qualities of evanescence, has a quality of disappearing or vanishing. The evanescence of a shooting star makes it hard to catch — it's there one moment and gone the next. Evanescence is a word typically used to describe an event that fades from sight or memory, or sometimes the fleeting quality of worldly success.

Example Sentences

She pairs them with a dissonant rock-pop sound that's equal parts Alanis Morissette and Evanescence - a stylistic choice that initially worked against her.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

Acoustic Christmas had several bands that hit quite a while ago: Papa Roach, All-American Rejects, Evanescence.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 23, 2026

I stopped writing and to protect that other precious world, I stopped visiting the Evanescence message boards.

From Salon • Apr. 29, 2023

I was also pleased to have the return of Evanescence this year, one of the bands to soundtrack those aforementioned angsty preteen years.

From Slate • Dec. 23, 2020

There is the charm of Evanescence, that which lends to supreme beauty and grace an aureole of Pathos.

From The Raven by Poe, Edgar Allan