fleeting

American  

[flee-ting] / ˈfli tɪŋ /

adjective

1. passing swiftly; vanishing quickly; transient; transitory.

   fleeting beauty;

   a fleeting glance.

   Synonyms:

   fugitive, brief, flying, passing

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fleeting British  

/ ˈfliːtɪŋ /

adjective

1. rapid and transient

   a fleeting glimpse of the sea

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Other Word Forms

• fleetingly adverb
• fleetingness noun
• unfleeting adjective

Etymology

Origin of fleeting

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English; fleet ² + -ing ²

Example Sentences

As the obstacles mount against Kornev, his paranoia grows, leading to fleeting moments of surrealism.

From Los Angeles Times

In the year 1979, smog marked the lives of two Southern California women — one fleetingly, one for her entire career.

From Los Angeles Times

October’s windfall also proved fleeting: In January, one of the Hyperliquid accounts lost more than $128 million on an ill-fated bet that ether would rise.

From The Wall Street Journal

Middle Eastern intermediators have been racing for days to get talks going to end the war, but said the gaps between the parties remain enormous and that progress remains fleeting.

From The Wall Street Journal

The flight-to-safety bid for the dollar that is helping to undermine the yen could also be fleeting, some analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cursory
• ephemeral
• fading
• momentary
• short-lived
• sudden
• transitory