instant

plural instants · alternative obsolete instaunt

1. A very short period of time; a moment.

   She paused for only an instant, which was just enough time for John to change the subject.

   2 more examples

   Thy life is long, Eternity is short. So short that, shouldst thou die and Eternity should pass, and after the passing of Eternity thou shouldst live again, thou wouldst say: ‘I closed mine eyes but for an instant.’

   1905, Lord Dunsany [i.e., Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany], The Gods of Pegāna, London: [Charles] Elkin Mathews, […], →OCLC, page 76

   "On receiving the baton, steam was again turned on, and the train passed on to the bridge... when the train had got about 200 yards from the cabin [in the signal box], he observed sparks flying from the wheels; and after they had continued about three minutes, there was a sudden bright flash of light, and in an instant there was total darkness, the tail lamps of the train, the sparks, and flash of light, all, he said disappearing at the same instant."

   2021 November 3, Dr Joseph Brennan, “Boxes with functions across the centuries”, in RAIL, number 943, page 57, referring to the Tay Bridge disaster

   Synonyms: eyeblink, flash, jiffy, bat of an eye, bit, blink of an eye, crack, eyeblink

2. A single, usually precise, point in time.

   Liftoff occurs the instant the bolts are released.

   1 more example

   The instant the alarm went off, he fled the building.

   Synonyms: minute, moment

3. A beverage or food which has been pre-processed to reduce preparation time, especially instant coffee.

alternative obsolete instaunt

1. datednot comparableImpending; imminent.

   Impending death is thine, and instant doom.

   1703, Matthew Prior, an Ode to Colonel George Villiers

   Synonyms: pending, proximate, around the corner, at hand, forthcoming, imminent, impendent, impending

2. datednot comparableUrgent; pressing; acute.
3. datednot comparableInsistent; persistent.

   January 2, 1827, Thomas Carlyle, letter to Mrs. Carlyle, Scotsbrig I am beginning to be very instant for some sort of occupation.

   1 more example

   Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer.

   1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Romans 12:12

   Synonyms: exigent, imperious, acute, bad, clamant, crying, dire, sore

4. not comparablelawPresent; current; extant.

   He received just two disciplinary reports prior to committing the instant offense, one in March 2019 for activating an alarm during a non-emergency situation, and one in May 2019 for failing to provide a urine specimen.

   December 28, 2019 Attorney Jeffery S. Levin, quoted in The Boston Globe, p. 3

5. not comparableOccurring immediately; immediate; present.

   I ſee no day to To day, the inſtant Time is alvvayes the fitteſt time.

   1645, Thomas Fuller, “Personall Meditations”, in Good Thoughts in Bad Times, […], Exeter, Devon: […] Thomas Hunt, →OCLC, section VIII, page 19

   3 more examples

   No one, however, would have anything to do with him, as Mr. Keeson's orders in those respects were very strict; he had often threatened any one of his employés with instant dismissal if he found him in company with one of these touts.

   1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Hocussing of Cigarette”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published 1905, →OCLC; republished as popular edition, London: Greening & Co., 1909, OCLC 11192831, quoted in The Case of Miss Elliott (ebook no. 2000141h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg of Australia, February 2020

   Gone are all the days of instant romance / And the nights of slow goodbyes / It was a time of life when foxy was the dance / And then you got wise to all of my abilis

   1978, Bionic Boogie, “Hot Butterfly”, in Gregg Diamond Bionic Boogie – Hot Butterfly (performed by Luther Vandross)

   As the body count rose, Tarrant quickly became a hero who had achieved a “new high score,” surpassing the former record holder Seung-Hui Cho of Virginia Tech. Tarrant attained instant cult status in the community.

   2023 February 27, Luke Munn, “8chan's Playful Hate”, in Red Pilled - The Allure of Digital Hate, Bielefeld: Bielefeld University Press, →DOI, →ISBN, page 37

   Synonyms: instantaneous, flash, immediate, split-second, insta-, instantaneous, present

6. not comparableLasting for a short moment; momentary; short-lived.

   Synonyms: brief, transient, earthly, ephemeral, brief, deciduous, evanescent, fleeting

7. not comparableVery quickly and easily prepared.

   instant coffee; instant noodles; instant mashed potato; instant photo

8. datednot comparableOf the current month.

   I refer to your letter of the 16th instant in regard to traffic disruption.

   2 more examples

   Vice-Admiral Kamimura reports that at dawn of the 14th instant, our squadron found, off Ulsan, the south-eastern coast of Corea, three ships of the Vladivostock squadron steaming southward.

   1904 August 17 [1904 August 13], “KAMIMURA'S REPORT.”, in Hongkong Daily Press, number 14,467, Hong Kong, sourced from Tokyo and Kamimura Hikonojō, →OCLC, page 2, column 5

   I have maturely reflected on the subject of your letter of the 18th instant; and the more I have reflected the more I have become convinced, that I could not, without manifest impropriety, make the avowal or disavowal which you seem to think necessary.

   1979 [1804], Alexander Hamilton, “From Alexander Hamilton to Aaron Burr, 20 June 1804”, in Harold C. Syrett, editor, 1 May 1802 – 23 October 1804, Additional Documents 1774–1799, Addenda and Errata (The Papers of Alexander Hamilton; 26), New York: Columbia University Press, pages 247-249

alternative obsolete instaunt

1. not comparablepoeticAt once; immediately.

   He left the room for his relinquished sword, / And Julia instant to the closet flew.

   1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, I.182

plural instants · alternative obsolete instaunt

1. instant camera

present singular third person instants · participle present instanting · participle past instanted · past instanted · alternative obsolete instaunt

1. obsoletetransitiveTo urge, press (someone); to insist on, demand (something).