trice
1 of 2noun
ˈtrīs 
: a brief space of time : instant —used chiefly in the phrase in a trice
trice
2 of 2verb
triced; tricing
transitive verb
: to haul up or in and lash or secure (something, such as a sail) with a small rope
Synonyms
Noun
- beat
- eyeblink
- flash
- heartbeat
- instant
- jiff
- jiffy
- minute
- moment
- nanosecond
- New York minute
- second
- shake
- split second
- twinkle
- twinkling
- wink
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Noun it's just a scrape on the knee—we'll have you fixed up in a trice
Recent Examples on the Web
Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2022 The precarious bridges, as conventional wisdom goes, could be cut down in a trice, leaving enemies stymied. Selena Takigawa Hoy, Travel + Leisure, 21 June 2021 In a trice, the amicability recedes to approximately the level of the battle of Verdun. Kyle Smith, National Review, 8 Oct. 2019 One side of the balance-sheet is hard-to-sell loans; the other side is deposits that can be withdrawn in a trice. The Economist, 11 July 2019 The problem is fixed in a trice, and the show goes on without a hitch. David Kirby, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019 The process takes a whole morning and a good part of the afternoon, but the breads themselves disappear in a trice, said Buffington. Janice Steinhagen, Courant Community, 7 Mar. 2018 Another legend has Ruth eating anywhere from 12 to 24 hot dogs between games of a twin bill, a feat Chestnut replicated in a trice at Yankee Stadium. Steve Rushin, SI.com, 4 July 2016 See More
Noun
At least a hundred people died in that one, including 15 who were standing on bridges marveling at the rush of waters when, in a trice, the waters tore away the bridges. Los Angeles Times, 5 July 2022 The precarious bridges, as conventional wisdom goes, could be cut down in a trice, leaving enemies stymied. Selena Takigawa Hoy, Travel + Leisure, 21 June 2021 In a trice, the amicability recedes to approximately the level of the battle of Verdun. Kyle Smith, National Review, 8 Oct. 2019 One side of the balance-sheet is hard-to-sell loans; the other side is deposits that can be withdrawn in a trice. The Economist, 11 July 2019 The problem is fixed in a trice, and the show goes on without a hitch. David Kirby, WSJ, 17 Jan. 2019 The process takes a whole morning and a good part of the afternoon, but the breads themselves disappear in a trice, said Buffington. Janice Steinhagen, Courant Community, 7 Mar. 2018 Another legend has Ruth eating anywhere from 12 to 24 hot dogs between games of a twin bill, a feat Chestnut replicated in a trice at Yankee Stadium. Steve Rushin, SI.com, 4 July 2016 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English trise, literally, pull, from trisen
Verb
Middle English trisen, tricen to pull, trice, from Middle Dutch trisen to hoist, from trise windlass
First Known Use
Noun
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing trice
trices
noun
as in minutes
a very small space of time it's just a scrape on the knee—we'll have you fixed up in a trice Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- minutes
- seconds
- heartbeats
- moments
- twinklings
- split seconds
- jiffs
- shakes
- instants
- nanoseconds
- twinkles
- eyeblinks
- winks
- New York minutes
- jiffies
- flashes
- beats
- microseconds
- snatches
- spurts
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- ages
- aeons
- eons
- eternities
- infinities
- lifetimes
- forevers