flash in the pan

Cultural  

1. Someone or something that promises great success but soon fails: “The rock group that was all the rage last year turned out to be just another flash in the pan.”

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flash in the pan Idioms  

1. An effort or person that promises great success but fails. For example, His second novel proved to be a flash in the pan, or We had high hopes for the new director, but she was a flash in the pan. This metaphoric term alludes to the 17th-century flintlock musket, which could be fired only when the flash of the priming powder in the lockpan ignited the charge in the bore. When it failed to ignite, there was only a flash in the pan and the gun did not shoot.

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Example Sentences

That could be a signal to the committee that Marvell’s recent ascent isn’t just a flash in the pan.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026

The difference north of the border is that Hearts insists it isn’t a flash in the pan.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

She’s far from the early days of her career, when many considered her defiance a gimmick, or refuted her as a flash in the pan.

From Salon • Feb. 5, 2025

Dubois, 27, becomes a top dog in the glamour division, but 'Dynamite' is not a flash in the pan and has long been prophesied for heavyweight stardom.

From BBC • Sep. 22, 2024

"A flash in the pan," said he, coolly.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 14, No. 81, July, 1864 by Various