transience

[ tran-shuhns, -zhuhns, -zee-uhns ]

noun

1. transient state or quality.

Other Words From

• non·transience noun
• non·transien·cy noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of transience¹

First recorded in 1735–45; transi(ent) + -ence

Example Sentences

During that “Modern Love” podcast, when he was trying to decipher why he had started crying, Garfield made a confession that felt particularly raw: “I’m sad. Sad at losing anyone, anything, at the transience of certain relationships in my life, losing my mother, of course, the idea of losing my father, of not being there when my nephews are my age or older, the concept of not having children of my own.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Our dwellings were designed for transience,” writes Kate Braverman about the midcentury West Los Angeles of her childhood in “Frantic Transmissions to and From Los Angeles: An Accidental Memoir.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Our dwellings were designed for transience,” writes Kate Braverman about the midcentury West Los Angeles of her childhood in “Frantic Transmissions to and From Los Angeles: An Accidental Memoir.”

From Los Angeles Times

Alice Springs — or Mparntwe, to use its Indigenous name, from the Arrernte people — is infamous for its transience.

From New York Times

The instrumental music is often skeletal, with an ensemble consisting almost entirely of plucked instruments, their quick decays a reminder of transience.

From New York Times

Related Words

• agitation
• anxiety
• disquiet
• edginess
• ferment
• instability
• jitters
• nervousness
• turbulence
• turmoil
• uneasiness
• unrest