SPLIT SECOND Synonyms: 46 Similar and Opposite Words

split-second 1 of 2

adjective

ˈsplit-ˈse-kənd

Definition of split-second

as in instantaneous

done or occurring without any noticeable lapse in time a day trader who is used to making split-second decisions

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

split second

2 of 2

noun

as in minute

a very small space of time a devastating accident can cause everything in your life to change in a split second

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of split-second

Adjective

Ward acknowledges the volatile nature of the job and the need to make split-second decisions. — CBS News, 5 Oct. 2026 The reminders come during back-to-school week every year, but the hair-raising video showed how a split-second decision could be the difference between life and death. — Frank Witsil, Freep.com, 11 Sep. 2026

Noun

Clutching an aerial hoop on a Johannesburg circus stage, a young performer pauses for a split second before launching into the air and gliding, drawing cheers from the crowd below. — ABC News, 18 Sep. 2026 In the days leading up to Saturday’s game against the Saints, Bennett and Simpson split second-team reps during the teams’ joint practice. — Los Angeles Times, 22 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for split-second

Recent Examples of Synonyms for split-second

Adjective

Commissioner Rob Manfred has portrayed the instantaneous lockout as a means of moving the talks along.

— Evan Drellich, New York Times, 29 Oct. 2026
Cameras can’t see through dense fog or measure instantaneous velocity like radar can.

— Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of instantaneous

Noun

What to do nearby As with other safaris, days are bookended by morning and afternoon game drives, set largely around the east side of Madikwe, where the lodge is based (15 minutes from the airstrip).

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Nov. 2026
Jake LaRavia picked up his fourth foul with eight minutes and two seconds left in the second quarter.

— Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of minute

Adjective

There’s non-kaiju human death, too, including a flashback to the immediate aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing in which a bloodied grandfather discovers the charred remains of his daughter and grandson.

— James Grebey, Vulture, 5 Nov. 2026
Learn More › Two hunting equipment manufacturers, Latitude Outdoors and Hunt Arsenal, have issued immediate stop-use notices following reports of potentially dangerous equipment failures.

— Erik Barber, Outdoor Life, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of immediate

Noun

With 13 seconds left and third down at the Braves’ 12, Guess threw the ball up toward the end zone and Brown, his best friend since the age of 6, caught it for a touchdown.

— Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2026
Eventually the inevitability of gravity brings them close enough to suddenly merge, sending out a tremendous blast of matter and energy that can outshine the sun by a factor of many billions, though just for the briefest fraction of a second.

— Phil Plait, Scientific American, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of second

Adjective

The Thickening Therapy Collection delivers instant volume and is packed with vegan collagen and biotin to support thicker, fuller-looking hair.

— ABC News, ABC News, 2 Nov. 2026
High vamps gained instant popularity earlier this year when Hailey Bieber donned Reformation’s Inez Pumps, and Kendall Jenner and Katie Holmes wore glove flats.

— Kaelin Dodge, InStyle, 2 Nov. 2026

Definition of instant

Noun

The music as a whole seems to reflect all of this moment-to-moment action at a larger structural level, shifting from one overlapping movement to the next according to the same fractal geometry that governs the beat.

— Andy Cush, Pitchfork, 31 Oct. 2026
Elle Fanning, currently embracing the gloriously eccentric wardrobe of her Hunger Games character Effie Trinket, has already delivered some spectacular millinery moments on the press tour for Sunrise on the Reaping.

— Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of moment

Noun

And down on the court at what is now M&T Bank Center at Gampel Pavilion on campus or PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford, there must be standard bearers, the current flesh and heartbeat and faces of UConn basketball.

— Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 30 Oct. 2026
Her team found a 77% higher rate of irregular heartbeats during the six weeks around the 2016 election, compared with a control period.

— Elizabeth Cooney, STAT, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of heartbeat

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split-second

split second

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Style

“Split-second.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/split-second. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of split-second

adjective

noun

Example Sentences

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