fleeting

1 of 2

adjective

fleet·​ing ˈflē-tiŋ 

: passing swiftly : transitory

… the often fleeting nature of fame and fortune …

—Tom Sinclair

fleetingly

ˈflē-tiŋ-lē 

adverb

fleetingness noun

fleeting

2 of 2

present participle of fleet entry 3

Synonyms of fleeting

Adjective

• flash
• brief
• temporary
• transient
• passing
• transitory
• ephemeral
• momentary
• evanescent

Choose the Right Synonym for fleeting

transient, transitory, ephemeral, momentary, fugitive, fleeting, evanescent mean lasting or staying only a short time.

transient applies to what is actually short in its duration or stay.

a hotel catering primarily to transient guests

transitory applies to what is by its nature or essence bound to change, pass, or come to an end.

fame in the movies is transitory

ephemeral implies striking brevity of life or duration.

many slang words are ephemeral

momentary suggests coming and going quickly and therefore being merely a brief interruption of a more enduring state.

my feelings of guilt were only momentary

fugitive and fleeting imply passing so quickly as to make apprehending difficult.

let a fugitive smile flit across his face

fleeting moments of joy

evanescent suggests a quick vanishing and an airy or fragile quality.

the story has an evanescent touch of whimsy that is lost in translation

Examples of fleeting in a Sentence

Adjective

I caught a fleeting glimpse of the comet.

had a fleeting desire to jump into the cool lake but kept on hiking

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Cook’s fleeting third down usage Without Ty Johnson available due to a hamstring injury, the Bills smartly wanted to see if their top rusher, James Cook, could stay on the field for third downs. — Joe Buscaglia, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026

For a fleeting moment, the Arab Spring seemed to offer an escape from the bleak logic that had dominated the previous decade. — Ayman M. Mohyeldin, Vanity Fair, 11 Sep. 2026

In a city where everything can feel fleeting, Kiko Kostadinov has created something that asks you to linger long enough for a memory to form — and perhaps, eventually, become part of the next collection. — Michael Anthony Hall, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Yet, like the skies over the Normandy coast, the gloom proved fleeting. — Ed Meza, Variety, 11 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1563, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fleeting

• beating
• bleating
• cheating
• eating
• greeting
• heating
• meeting
• seating
• sheeting
• sweeting
• treating
• accreting

Kids Definition

fleeting

adjective

fleet·​ing

ˈflēt-iŋ

: not lasting : passing swiftly

a fleeting glimpse