in a flash

1. Also,. Quickly, immediately. For example, I'll be with you in a flash, or He said he'd be done in a jiffy, or I'll be off the phone in a second, or I felt a drop or two, and in a trice there was a downpour. The first idiom alludes to a flash of lightning and dates from about 1800. The word jiffy, meaning “a short time,” is of uncertain origin and dates from the late 1700s (as does the idiom using it); a second, literally one-sixtieth of a minute, has been used vaguely to mean “a very short time” since the early 1800s; and trice originally meant “a single pull at something” and has been used figuratively since the 1500s.

Example Sentences

“All right . . .” Penelope was on her feet in a flash!

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Gross domestic product declined 0.5% in the three months through September, compared with 0.1% growth in the second quarter, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs said in a flash estimate Monday.

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It was all a very clear reminder that the best-laid plans and political strategies can be derailed in a flash.

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The film’s most remarkable feat is that it manages to fit both everything and nothing into its plodding 135 minutes — even the brief “so bad it might be good” thrill wears off in a flash.

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He did crossword puzzles in a flash and was a wonderful classical guitarist.

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