temporary
[tem-puh-rer-ee]
- lasting, existing, serving, or effective for a time only; not permanent: a temporary need; a temporary job.
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- an office worker hired, usually through an agency on a per diem basis, for a short period of time.
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Origin of temporary
Synonyms
See more synonyms for temporary on Thesaurus.com1. impermanent, passing. Temporary, transient, transitory agree in referring to that which is not lasting or permanent. Temporary implies an arrangement established with no thought of continuance but with the idea of being changed soon: a temporary structure. Transient describes that which is in the process of passing by, and which will therefore last or stay only a short time: a transient condition. Transitory describes an innate characteristic by which a thing, by its very nature, lasts only a short time: Life is transitory.
Antonyms
1. permanent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for temporary
Contemporary Examples
The bill, which passed Congress without opposition, is only a temporary fix and expires in 2015.
Nazis, Sunscreen, and Sea Gull Eggs: Congress in 2014 Was Hella ProductiveBen Jacobs
December 29, 2014
Workers built a temporary rail track through the city to move the statue in a process that took three days.
On Monday, de Blasio called for a temporary halt to protests until after the funerals of the two slain officers.
This month a judge intervened and granted a 30-day temporary stay on police action against Abbott.
Or are the risks so great that a temporary ban is necessary?
Historical Examples
God has never, as far as we can see, dealt in special and temporary gifts.
The Conquest of FearBasil King
The men were preparing their breakfast, and a temporary halt had been called for that purpose.
In the Midst of AlarmsRobert Barr
He probably thought this first home so temporary it didn't count.
DustMr. and Mrs. Haldeman-Julius
Longfellow's Skeleton in Armor has revealed their temporary settlement.
Perhaps this fit was only temporary, and will not come again for a long time.
Frank Roscoe's SecretAllen Chapman
temporary
- not permanent; provisionaltemporary accommodation
- lasting only a short time; transitorytemporary relief from pain
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- a person, esp a secretary or other office worker, employed on a temporary basisOften shortened to: temp
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Word Origin
C16: from Latin temporārius, from tempus time
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for temporary
adj.
1540s, from Latin temporarius "of seasonal character, lasting a short time," from tempus (genitive temporis) "time, season" (see temporal). The noun meaning "person employed only for a time" is recorded from 1848.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper