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Which platform first popularized the idea of ephemeral online content?

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ephemeral

American  

[ih-fem-er-uhl] / ɪˈfɛm ər əl /

adjective

1. lasting a very short time; short-lived; transitory.

   The poem celebrates the ephemeral joys of childhood.

   Synonyms:

   brief, momentary, transient, evanescent, fleeting

   Antonyms:

   permanent

2. (of flowers or insects) lasting only a few days or less.

   Lily of the valley is an ephemeral flower.

3. being of temporary value or passing interest.

   She had a scrapbook full of ephemeral news clippings about forgotten events.

4. Computers.

   1. being or relating to messages, images, or other data that are written to temporary or virtual storage only, and are therefore liable to change or be lost unless copied to permanent storage immediately or within a very short time.

      Snapchat is an ephemeral messaging app.

   2. being or relating to a temporary storage medium, especially a virtual one.

      In case of a hardware failure this data will be lost, as it is only stored locally on an ephemeral drive.

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noun

1. anything short-lived, such as certain flowers and insects.

ephemeral British  

/ ɪˈfɛmərəl /

adjective

1. lasting for only a short time; transitory; short-lived

   ephemeral pleasure

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noun

1. a short-lived organism, such as the mayfly

2. a plant that completes its life cycle in less than one year, usually less than six months

Other Word Forms

• ephemerality
  noun
• ephemeralness
  noun
• nonephemeral
  adjective
• unephemeral
  adjective
• ephemerally
  adverb
• nonephemerally
  adverb
• unephemerally
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of ephemeral

First recorded in 1570–80; from Greek ephḗmer(os) “short-lived, lasting a day” (from ep- ep- + hēmér(a) “day” + -os, adjective suffix) + -al ¹

Explanation

Something that is fleeting or short-lived is ephemeral, like a fly that lives for one day or text messages flitting from cellphone to cellphone. Ephemeral (ə-FEM-ər-əl) was originally a medical term with the specific meaning "lasting only one day," as a fever or sickness (Hemera means "day" in Greek.) The word became more general, coming to mean "lasting a short time," covering the life spans of plants or insects and then eventually anything that is fleeting or transitory. A related word is the plural noun ephemera, meaning "things that are meant to last for only a short time." Posters for a rock concert are often ephemera, unless the band is so famous that they get saved and sold on eBay.

Example Sentences

"That ephemeral, wet-dry landscape - all the wading birds will absolutely love it, and you'll get insects... and all the really cool plants and flowers."

From BBC • Jul. 1, 2026

These are intended to serve as tangible souvenirs of the ephemeral dream in Dataland.

From Barron's • Jun. 19, 2026

It’s bathed in sunlight that only occasionally shines on an ephemeral memory, revealing that the recollection is laced with as much honest love as regret.

From Salon • May 25, 2026

The rainbow, however ephemeral, provides more than a grace note.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 1, 2026

Isn’t that prominence just an ephemeral phenomenon of the last few centuries, now fading behind the prominence of Japan and Southeast Asia?

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• fleeting
• short-lived
• transitory