immediate

[ ih-mee-dee-it ]

/ ɪˈmi di ɪt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR immediate ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

occurring or accomplished without delay; instant: an immediate reply.

following or preceding without a lapse of time: the immediate future.

having no object or space intervening; nearest or next: in the immediate vicinity.

of or relating to the present time or moment: our immediate plans.

without intervening medium or agent; direct: an immediate cause.

having a direct bearing: immediate consideration.

very close in relationship: my immediate family.

Philosophy. directly intuited.

Nearby words

immature, immature cataract, immaturity, immeasurable, immediacy, immediate, immediate allergy, immediate annuity, immediate auscultation, immediate constituent, immediate denture

Origin of immediate

1525–35; < Medieval Latin immediātus. See im-², mediate (adj.)

SYNONYMS FOR immediate

1 instantaneous.

3 close, proximate.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR immediate ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

im·me·di·ate·ness, nounqua·si-im·me·di·ate, adjectivequa·si-im·me·di·ate·ly, adverbun·im·me·di·ate, adjective

un·im·me·di·ate·ly, adverbun·im·me·di·ate·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for immediate

Their immediate response tells an important truth about a police slowdown that has spread throughout New York City in recent days.
Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown|Michael Daly|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Analysts interpreted it as an immediate ripple effect of the newly established US-Cuban détente.
Venezuela Says Goodbye to Its Lil Friend, While the Rest of the Continent Cheers|Catalina Lobo-Guererro|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
During the immediate protests for Michael Brown I walked in the crowd solo and mostly silent.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting|Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
JUDNICK: The immediate supremacist reaction is to equalize everything.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting|Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard|December 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST

The story was so appalling, the attack so brutish and morally offensive, that it provoked an immediate, furious response.
Why It Was Right to Question Rolling Stone’s U-VA Rape Story|Michael Moynihan|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With the war effectually over we enter a new economic era, and its immediate effect on prices is difficult to anticipate.
Herbert Hoover|Vernon Kellogg
All he got was a few looks of embarrassed concern from his immediate neighbours.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, September 16, 1914|Various
The council sent the mother and son away with the assurance of immediate action.
Comrades|Thomas Dixon
For immediate purposes, help might come even from that host of conservatives who believe all will be well if officials are honest.
Direct Legislation by the Citizenship through the Initiative and Referendum|James W. Sullivan
There was an immediate outbreak of hostile public opinion in Spain, which in Catalonia resulted in serious riots.
A History of Spain|Charles E. Chapman

British Dictionary definitions for immediate

immediate

/ (ɪˈmiːdɪət) /

adjective (usually prenominal)

taking place or accomplished without delayan immediate reaction

closest or most direct in effect or relationshipthe immediate cause of his downfall

having no intervening medium; direct in effectan immediate influence

contiguous in space, time, or relationshipour immediate neighbour

present; currentthe immediate problem is food

philosophy of or relating to an object or concept that is directly known or intuited

logic (of an inference) deriving its conclusion from a single premise, esp by conversion or obversion of a categorial statement

Derived Forms

immediacy or immediateness, noun

Word Origin for immediate

C16: from Medieval Latin immediātus, from Latin im- (not) + mediāre to be in the middle; see mediate

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

immediate

adjective

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of immediate

SYNONYMS FOR immediate

Related forms

Examples from the Web for immediate

British Dictionary definitions for immediate

immediate

adjective (usually prenominal)

Derived Forms

Word Origin for immediate