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

She’s still holding out hope this year’s lottery wasn’t a flash in the pan and she’ll have another chance.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 3, 2026

Watch reviewer and podcaster, Britt Pearce, agreed, describing these types of collaboration as "a flash in the pan, but they're a very exciting flash in the pan".

From BBC • May 18, 2026

You can watch it and go, "Oh, you're just going home and you're just breaking up with these people. It's just a flash in the pan of your life," but it's a big moment.

From Salon • Nov. 28, 2024

Well, I don't know as to that, for when there's a flash in the pan there's no report, but I guess you'll hear report enough when you meet those women over at the house.

From A Yankee from the West A Novel by Read, Opie Percival