immediacy

noun

im·​me·​di·​a·​cy i-ˈmē-dē-ə-sē 

British often -ˈmē-jə-sē

plural immediacies

1

: the quality or state of being immediate

the immediacy of a live performance

2

: something that is immediate

the immediacy of our need

—usually plural

the basic immediacies of life

Synonyms of immediacy

• proximity

Examples of immediacy in a Sentence

Television coverage gave the war greater immediacy than it had ever before had.

There is an immediacy to watching a live performance that you cannot get from hearing a recording.

Recent Examples on the Web

The effect is highly corporeal, a naturalistic confrontation with the immediacy of death. — Joshua Yaffa, New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2026

In You Can See Everything, glimpses of crewmembers and equipment serve to heighten the immediacy. — Alex Barasch, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2026

There’s the convenience of e-commerce and the immediacy of retail — and entering into the void between is Instamall. — Evan Clark, Footwear News, 19 Oct. 2026

Firstly, autobiographical approaches and autofiction help emphasize the immediacy of events, and, as some argue, refrain from compromising authenticity. — Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

immediacy

noun

im·​me·​di·​a·​cy im-ˈēd-ē-ə-sē 

plural immediacies

1

: the quality or state of being immediate

2

: something that is of immediate importance

immediacies of daily life