Meaning & use
imminent
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Meaning
adjectivenot comparable
likely to happen very soon, especially something unpleasant or important
Grammar: Used before a noun or after linking verbs like be, seem, look: The storm is imminent.
Patterns
- be imminent
- an imminent threat
- imminent danger
- imminent arrival
The weather forecast warned that a heavy storm was imminent.
With the deadline imminent, the team worked through the night.
The species faces imminent extinction unless its habitat is protected.
Common combinations
- imminent danger
- The hikers were in imminent danger of falling rocks.
- imminent collapse
- Engineers warned of the bridge's imminent collapse.
- imminent arrival
- We cleaned the house before our guests' imminent arrival.
- imminent threat
- The government treated the cyberattack as an imminent threat.
- imminent departure
- The train's imminent departure made us run to the platform.
Synonyms and how they differ
- impending
- Similar to imminent but often suggests something is hanging over you for a longer time, not necessarily very soon.
- approaching
- More neutral and simply means coming closer in time or space; it does not carry the same urgency or threat.
- forthcoming
- Used for events that are planned or expected, often in formal contexts, without the sense of danger.
Opposites
Word family
- imminence noun
- The state of being about to happen soon.
- imminently adverb
- In a way that is about to happen very soon.
Commonly confused: imminent or eminent? imminent or immanent?
imminent vs eminent
Eminent means famous and respected in a profession (an eminent scientist), while imminent means about to happen.
imminent vs immanent
Immanent is a formal or philosophical word meaning existing inside something; it sounds similar but has a very different meaning.
Practice
The report said the company was in ______ danger of going bankrupt.
Choose one answer.
Imminent fits because bankruptcy is likely to happen very soon. Eminent means famous and respected, immanent is a philosophical term, and imminently is an adverb, not an adjective.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “imminent”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.