evanescent

[ ev-uh-nes-uhnt ]

adjective

1. vanishing; fading away; fleeting.
2. tending to become imperceptible; scarcely perceptible.

evanescent

/ ˌɛvəˈnɛsənt /

adjective

1. passing out of sight; fading away; vanishing
2. ephemeral or transitory

Derived Forms

• ˌevaˈnescence, noun
• ˌevaˈnescently, adverb

Other Words From

• ev·a·nes·cence noun
• ev·a·nes·cent·ly adverb
• non·ev·a·nes·cent adjective
• non·ev·a·nes·cent·ly adverb
• un·ev·a·nes·cent adjective
• un·ev·a·nes·cent·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of evanescent¹

First recorded in 1700–1805; from Latin ēvānēscent- (stem of ēvānēscēns ) “vanishing, disappearing”; evanesce, -ent

Example Sentences

It’s as if by forswearing the evanescent experience of real-life performing, Glenn Gould gave himself eternal fame.

From Los Angeles Times

The writing had been individual attempts to capture moments, feelings, impulses; the reshaping was to shift those evanescent feelings into a coherent form.

From Los Angeles Times

Climate change has made the evanescent sport more precarious.

From Los Angeles Times

But it was in his novel “Next Season,” which I’m always foisting on theater friends, that Blakemore managed to capture the evanescent world of the stage in all its heartbreak and glory.

From Los Angeles Times

You want the fastest, easiest way to get that pile of evanescently sweet, nubby cobs on the table, ready for butter-slathering and gleeful chomping.

From Seattle Times