INSTANTS

Noun

instants

plural of instant

Source: Wiktionary


INSTANT

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



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Word of the Day

30 May 2025

FOREHAND

(noun) (sports) a return made with the palm of the hand facing the direction of the stroke (as in tennis or badminton or squash)


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Coffee Trivia

Raw coffee beans, soaked in water and spices, are chewed like candy in many parts of Africa.

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