Meaning & use
fleeting
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Meaning
adjectivecomparable
Lasting only a very short time and passing quickly.
Grammar: Usually before a noun: a fleeting moment. Can be compared: more fleeting, most fleeting.
Patterns
- a fleeting moment
- a fleeting glimpse
- a fleeting visit
She caught a fleeting glimpse of the celebrity before the crowd closed in.
Fame can be fleeting, so enjoy it while it lasts.
There was a fleeting look of sadness in his eyes.
Word forms
| comparative | more fleeting |
|---|---|
| superlative | most fleeting |
Common combinations
- a fleeting moment
- For a fleeting moment, I thought I saw a ghost.
- a fleeting glimpse
- We had only a fleeting glimpse of the parade.
- a fleeting visit
- He made a fleeting visit to his hometown.
- fleeting fame
- The band enjoyed fleeting fame in the 1980s.
Synonyms and how they differ
- brief
- Brief means short in duration but is neutral; fleeting adds a sense of something quickly disappearing.
- momentary
- Momentary means lasting only a moment, similar to fleeting, but often used for things like pain or hesitation.
Opposites
Word family
- fleetingly adverb
- In a way that lasts only a moment: She smiled fleetingly.
Commonly confused: fleeting or fleeing?
fleeting vs fleeing
Fleeing is the present participle of flee, meaning running away; fleeting means short-lived.
Practice
The beauty of the sunset was ______; within minutes the sky turned dark.
Choose one answer.
Fleeting is the adjective meaning lasting only a short time. 'Fleeing' is a verb form, 'fleet' is a noun or adjective meaning fast, and 'fleetingly' is an adverb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fleeting”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.