transience

noun

tran·​sience ˈtran(t)-sh(ē-)ən(t)s  ˈtran-zē-ən(t)s 

ˈtran(t)-sē-;

ˈtran-zhən(t)s,

-jən(t)s

: the quality or state of being transient

Synonyms

• shortness
• impermanence
• temporariness
• transiency
• ephemerality
• transitoriness
• evanescence
• fleetingness
• impermanency

Examples of transience in a Sentence

the transience of spring in northern climates means residents get to enjoy temperate weather only briefly before the heat and humidity of summer set in

Recent Examples on the Web

Much of Gilbert’s early work displays an awareness of both the profundity and the transience of romance, and of the many different universes that one life can open into or contain. —Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025

The April cherry trees, with their brief pink opulence, seem infused with the spirit of mono no aware—the Japanese idea of the transience of things, the gentle sadness yet also the beauty of impermanence. —Lauren Groff, The Atlantic, 20 Aug. 2025

Door-to-door efforts are stymied by cultural barriers, unfounded stories about vaccines, and the region’s poverty and transience. —CNN Money, 5 Aug. 2025

Davis arrived in September 2023 to the same sense of transience as Watford. —Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 31 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1739, in the meaning defined above