INSTANT
clamant, crying, exigent, insistent, instant
(adjective) demanding attention; “clamant needs”; “a crying need”; “regarded literary questions as exigent and momentous”- H.L.Mencken; “insistent hunger”; “an instant need”
instantaneous, instant
(adjective) occurring with no delay; “relief was instantaneous”; “instant gratification”
instant, inst
(adjective) in or of the present month; “your letter of the 10th inst”
moment, minute, second, instant
(noun) a particular point in time; “the moment he arrived the party began”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology 1
Noun
instant (plural instants)
A very short period of time; a moment.
A single, usually precise, point in time.
A beverage or food which has been pre-processed to reduce preparation time, especially instant coffee.
Ellipsis of instant camera.
Etymology 2
Adjective
instant (not comparable)
(dated) Impending; imminent.
Synonyms: pending, proximate, Thesaurus:impending
(dated) Urgent; pressing; acute.
(dated) Insistent; persistent.
Synonyms: exigent, imperious, Thesaurus:urgent
(legal) Present; current; extant.
Occurring immediately; immediate; present.
Synonyms: instantaneous, Thesaurus:instantaneous
Lasting for a short moment; momentary; short-lived.
Synonyms: brief, transient, Thesaurus:ephemeral
Very quickly and easily prepared.
Of the current month.
Synonym: inst.
Adverb
instant (not comparable)
(poetic) At once; immediately.
Source: Wiktionary
In"stant, a. Etym: [L. instans, -antis, p. pr. of instare to stand upon, to press upon; pref. in- in, on + stare to stand: cf. F. in. See Stand.]
1. Pressing; urgent; importunate; earnest. Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer. Rom. xii. 12. I am beginning to be very instant for some sort of occupation. Carlyle.
2. Closely pressing or impending in respect to time; not deferred; immediate; without delay. Impending death is thine, and instant doom. Prior.
3. Present; current. The instant time is always the fittest time. Fuller.
Note: The word in this sense is now used only in dates, to indicate the current month; as, the tenth of July instant.
In"stant, adv.
Definition: Instantly. [Poetic] Instant he flew with hospitable haste. Pope.
In"stant, n. Etym: [F. instant, fr. L. instans standing by, being near, present. See Instant, a.]
1. A point in duration; a moment; a portion of time too short to be estimated; also, any particular moment. There is scarce an instant between their flourishing and their not being. Hooker.
2. A day of the present or current month; as, the sixth instant; -- an elliptical expression equivalent to the sixth of the month instant, i. e., the current month. See Instant, a., 3.
Syn.
– Moment; flash; second.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
6 May 2025
HEEDLESS
(adjective) marked by or paying little heed or attention; “We have always known that heedless self-interest was bad morals; we know now that it is bad economics”--Franklin D. Roosevelt; “heedless of danger”; “heedless of the child’s crying”
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