If you describe something as ephemeral, you mean that it lasts only for a very short time.
[formal]
He talked about the country's ephemeral unity being shattered by the defeat.
These paintings are in some ways a reminder that earthly pleasures are ephemeral.
Synonyms: transient, short, passing, brief More Synonyms of ephemeral
ephemeral in British English
(ɪˈfɛmərəl)
adjective
1.
lasting for only a short time; transitory; short-lived
ephemeral pleasure
noun
2.
a short-lived organism, such as the mayfly
3.
a plant that completes its life cycle in less than one year, usually less than six months
Derived forms
ephemerally (eˈphemerally)
adverb
ephemerality (eˌphemerˈality) or ephemeralness (eˈphemeralness)
noun
Word origin
C16: from Greek ephēmeros lasting only a day, from hēmera day
ephemeral in American English
(ɛˈfɛmərəl; ɪˈfɛmərəl; iˈfɛmərəl)
adjective
1.
lasting only one day
2.
short-lived; transitory
ephemeral glory
noun
3.
an ephemeral thing; specif., an organism with a brief life cycle
SIMILAR WORDS: ˈtransient
Derived forms
ephemerality (eˌphemerˈality) (ɛˌfɛmərˈæləti)
noun or eˈphemeralness
ephemerally (eˈphemerally)
adverb
Word origin
< Gr ephēmeros (see ephemeron) + -al
Examples of 'ephemeral' in a sentence
ephemeral
The nature of train drinking is an ephemeral pleasure.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
They represent the bulk of total investment returns because capital gains so often prove ephemeral.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Why not take a detour to a garden in search of an ephemeral beauty or two?
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It is unusual to make a dedication of something as ephemeral as a column.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Not a bad eulogy for an ephemeral medium where the credits are the roll call of the unknown.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Many of the organizations proved ephemeral.
Shubert, Adrian A Social History of Modern Spain (1991)
Without a camera to imply documentation or recording, these beautiful, often eerie works become ephemeral.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
There is something floaty, ephemeral about the 62-year-old academic.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
They all began with earnest monologues about education, but before long they were each struggling with crowd control and the ephemeral donkey work nobody told them about.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
York, and now it was time to balance that out with something simpler, and learn how to make those joys less external and ephemeral.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Definition of 'ephemeral'
(adjective)
Definition
lasting only for a short time
These paintings are a reminder that earthly pleasures are ephemeral.
Synonyms
transient
the transient nature of high fashion
short
We had a short meeting.
passing
people who dismissed mobile phones as a passing fad
brief
This time their visit is brief.
temporary
a temporary loss of memory
fleeting
They caught only a fleeting glimpse of the driver.
short-lived
Any hope that the speech would end the war was short-lived.
fugitive
Love is as fugitive and insubstantial as smoke, yet we all pursue it.
flitting
momentary
a momentary lapse of concentration
transitory
Most teenage romances are transitory.
evanescent (formal)
the evanescent effects of light and weather on the landscape
impermanent
Looking at the sky reminds me how impermanent we all are.
fugacious
Opposites
lasting
,
enduring
,
persisting
,
eternal
,
abiding
,
durable
,
long-lasting
,
immortal
,
steadfast
Additional synonyms
in the sense of brief
Definition
short in duration
This time their visit is brief.
Synonyms
short,
fast,
quick,
temporary,
fleeting,
swift,
short-lived,
little,
hasty,
momentary,
ephemeral,
quickie (informal),
transitory
in the sense of evanescent
Definition
quickly fading away
the evanescent effects of light and weather on the landscape
Synonyms
ephemeral,
passing,
brief,
fading,
fleeting,
vanishing,
short-lived,
fugitive,
transient,
momentary,
transitory,
impermanent,
fugacious
in the sense of fleeting
Definition
rapid and soon passing
They caught only a fleeting glimpse of the driver.