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instant

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instant¹

  • /ˈɪnstənt/

Where it comes from

From Middle English instant (“infinitely short period of time”), from Old French instant (“assiduous, at hand”, adjective), from Latin īnstāns, īnstantis (“present, pressing, urgent”, literally “standing near”), present active participle of īnstō (“to stand upon, be nearby”), from in- (“after”) + stō (“to stand”). Compare Old English instede (“immediately, on the spot, at once”). More at in, stand.

noun instants · 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.

    Similar: eyeblink, flash, jiffy, bat of an eye, bit, blink of an eye, crack, glimpse, half a mo, instant, jiff, jot

  2. A single, usually precise, point in time. The instant the alarm went off, he fled the building.

    Similar: minute, moment

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

instant²

  • /ˈɪnstənt/

Where it comes from

From French instant and Middle English instant, both from Old French, from Latin instans (“standing by, being near, present, also urgent, importunate”), present participle of instō (“to stand upon, press upon, urge, pursue, insist”), from in (“on, upon”) + stō (“to stand”); see state.

adjective instaunt

  1. dated, not comparable Impending; imminent. Impending death is thine, and instant doom.

    Similar: pending, proximate, around the corner, at hand, forthcoming, imminent, impendent, impending, in the offing, in the wind, instant, on the boil

  2. dated, not comparable Urgent; pressing; acute.
  3. dated, not comparable Insistent; persistent. Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer.

    Similar: exigent, imperious, acute, bad, clamant, crying, dire, sore, instant, rash, severe, pressing

  4. not comparable Present; 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.
  5. not comparable Occurring immediately; immediate; present. I ſee no day to To day, the inſtant Time is alvvayes the fitteſt time.

    Similar: instantaneous, flash, immediate, instant, split-second, insta-, present

  6. not comparable Lasting for a short moment; momentary; short-lived.

    Similar: brief, transient, earthly, ephemeral, deciduous, evanescent, fleeting, flying, fugacious, fugitive, instant, momentary

  7. not comparable Very quickly and easily prepared. instant coffee; instant noodles; instant mashed potato; instant photo
  8. dated, not comparable Of the current month. I refer to your letter of the 16th instant in regard to traffic disruption.

adverb instaunt

  1. not comparable, poetic At once; immediately. He left the room for his relinquished sword, / And Julia instant to the closet flew.

instant³

  • /ˈɪnstənt/

noun instants · instaunt

  1. instant camera

instant⁴

  • /ˈɪnstənt/

Where it comes from

Ultimately from Latin īnstāre; its precise evolution is uncertain. OED hints at (unattested) Middle French *instanter.

verb instants · instanting · instanted · instaunt

  1. obsolete, transitive To urge, press (someone); to insist on, demand (something).

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: jiffy, moment, instantaneous, present, second, fast, imperative, insistent, exigent, clamant, inst, split second, flash, trice, twinkling, wink

Translations

Every language

noun period of time

Españolinstante
한국어순간 sun'gan
日本語瞬間 shunkan
中文瞬間 /瞬间 shùnjiàn, 剎那 /刹那 chànà, 须臾 xūyú
Kiswahilisasa
Portuguêsinstante, momento
Françaisinstant
DeutschAugenblick, Moment
Italianoistante, attimo
Ελληνικάστιγμή stigmí
Românămoment, clipă
Русскиймгнове́ние mgnovénije, моме́нт momént
Tiếng Việtchốc, chốc lát, giây lát, chút, khoảnh khắc
العربيةلَحْظَة laḥẓa
עבריתרֶגַע rega

noun point in time

Españolmomento
日本語瞬間 shunkan
中文瞬間 /瞬间 shùnjiàn, 剎那 /刹那 chànà
Portuguêsinstante
Françaisinstant
DeutschAugenblick, Moment
Italianoistante
Ελληνικάστιγμή stigmí
Românămoment
Русскиймгнове́ние mgnovénije, моме́нт momént

noun instant beverage or food

한국어인스턴트 inseuteonteu
日本語即席 sokuseki, インスタント insutanto
中文方便 fāngbiàn
DeutschInstantessen

adj urgent

日本語急ぎの isogi no, 火急の kakyū no, 緊急の kinkyū no
中文紧急的, 紧迫的
Deutschdringend
Românăurgent
Русскийсро́чный sróčnyj, настоя́тельный nastojátelʹnyj, безотлага́тельный bezotlagátelʹnyj

adj imminent

日本語差し迫った sashisematta, 切迫した seppaku shita
Deutschbevorstehend
Românăiminent
Русскийнастоя́тельный nastojátelʹnyj, безотлага́тельный bezotlagátelʹnyj, предстоя́щий predstojáščij

adj immediate

日本語即席の sokuseki no, その場で決めた sonoba de kimeta, 瞬時の shunji no
中文立即的
Deutschaugenblicklich
Italianoimmediato
Românăinstant, imediat
Русскийнеме́дленный nemédlennyj, теку́щий tekúščij
עבריתבִּן רֶגַע bin regá'

adj momentary

Deutschmomentan, vorübergehend
Românămomentan, trecător
Русскийнеме́дленный nemédlennyj
עבריתבִּן רֶגַע bin regá'

adj quickly prepared

Españolinstantáneo
한국어인스턴트의 inseuteonteu-ui
日本語即席の sokuseki no, インスタントの insutanto no
中文速溶的, 即食的
Portuguêsinstantâneo, instantânea
Françaisinstantané
Deutschinstant-, fertig-
Românăinstant
Русскийраствори́мый rastvorímyj
עבריתבִּן רֶגַע bin regá'

adj of the current month

日本語今月の kongetsu no
Deutschdieses Monats, hujus
Românăacestei luni

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Cite this
MLA

"instant." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/instant. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

instant. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/instant

Chicago

"instant." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/instant.

BibTeX
@misc{instant_2026,
  title = {instant},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/instant},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}