Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition


Instantaneous

Inˊstan-ta′ne-ous

,
Adj.
[Cf. F.
instantané
.]
1.
Done or occurring in an instant, or without any perceptible duration of time;
as, the passage of electricity appears to be
instantaneous
.
His reason saw
With
instantaneous
view, the truth of things.
Thomson.
2.
At or during a given instant;
as,
instantaneous
acceleration, velocity, etc.
Inˊstan-ta′ne-ous-ly
,
adv.
Inˊstan-ta′ne-ous-ness
,
Noun.

Webster 1828 Edition


Instantaneous

INSTANTA'NEOUS

,
Adj.
Done in an instant; occurring or acting without any perceptible succession; very speedily. The passage of electricity through any given space appears to be instantaneous.

Definition 2024


instantaneous

instantaneous

English

Adjective

instantaneous (not comparable)

  1. Occurring, arising, or functioning without any delay; happening within an imperceptibly brief period of time.
    • 1631, William Twisse, A discovery of D. Iacksons vanitie, ch. 6, p. 223,
      This instantaneous motion is supposed by you, to be infinitely swift.
    • 1766, Oliver Goldsmith, The Vicar of Wakefield, ch. 14.
      However, no lovers in romance ever cemented a more instantaneous friendship.
    • 1813, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, ch. 57,
      The colour now rushed into Elizabeth's cheeks in the instantaneous conviction of its being a letter from the nephew.
    • 1907, Joseph Conrad, The Secret Agent, ch. 4,
      It's the principle of the pneumatic instantaneous shutter for a camera lens.
    • 2007, Spector jury given graphic account of actress 'murder' Times Online, London, 30 May (retrieved 13 July 2007),
      He said that the bullet went through her head, severed her spine and death would have been almost instantaneous.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

References

  • instantaneous” in An American Dictionary of the English Language, by Noah Webster, 1828.
  • instantaneous in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • instantaneous” in Dictionary.com Unabridged, v1.0.1, Lexico Publishing Group, 2006.
  • instantaneous” in Microsoft's Encarta World English Dictionary, North American Edition (2007)
  • "instantaneous" in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (Cambridge University Press, 2007)
  • "instantaneous" in Compact Oxford English Dictionary, (Oxford University Press, 2007)
  • Oxford English Dictionary, second edition (1989)