evanescent
Americanadjective
-
passing out of sight; fading away; vanishing
-
ephemeral or transitory
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of evanescent
First recorded in 1700–1805; from Latin ēvānēscent- (stem of ēvānēscēns ) “vanishing, disappearing”; see evanesce, -ent
Explanation
A beautiful sunset, a rainbow, a wonderful dream right before your alarm clock goes off — all of these could be described as evanescent, which means “fleeting” or “temporary.” Evanescent comes from the Latin ex, meaning "out of," and vanescere, meaning "to vanish." When pronouncing this word, emphasize the third syllable and note that the c is silent. You might want to practice saying evanescent a few times right now; if you stumble over pronunciation when you need this word the most, whatever you’re describing — be it a shooting star or a whiff of fragrant perfume — will be gone.
Vocabulary lists containing evanescent
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Music is evanescent, and popular music even more so, but “The Music Is Black” is both an experience and a chronology.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026
While investors walk on eggshells anticipating Fed decisions, tariff relief, and evanescent cease-fires, one company is steadily feeding investors nutritious dividends, cash flows, and earnings per share growth.
From Barron's • Dec. 11, 2025
But it was in his novel “Next Season,” which I’m always foisting on theater friends, that Blakemore managed to capture the evanescent world of the stage in all its heartbreak and glory.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 20, 2023
Next, Mr. Irwin wanted help producing the acrylic disks for which he would become known: evanescent convex shapes, mounted so they seemed to hover and lit from four sides to create a cloverleaf pattern.
From New York Times • Oct. 13, 2022
At multiple depths, as far as I could see, there were evanescent trails of phosphorescent green bubbles, the wake of speeding fish.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
