in a flash

Idioms and Phrases

Also, in a jiffy or second or trice . Quickly, immediately. For example, I'll be with you in a flash , or He said he'd be done in a jiffy , or I'll be off the phone in a second , or I felt a drop or two, and in a trice there was a downpour . The first idiom alludes to a flash of lightning and dates from about 1800. The word jiffy , meaning “a short time,” is of uncertain origin and dates from the late 1700s (as does the idiom using it); a second , literally one-sixtieth of a minute, has been used vaguely to mean “a very short time” since the early 1800s; and trice originally meant “a single pull at something” and has been used figuratively since the 1500s.

Example Sentences

Los Angeles police said the victims were homeless people caught in the crossfire of a gang shootout, and that two suspects had already been arrested for allegedly participating in a flash mob-style robbery.

From Los Angeles Times

Ken interjects in a flash, to chortles around the table.

From BBC

The body of a woman who was swept away in a flash flood in the Grand Canyon last week has been recovered, the National Park Service said.

From Los Angeles Times

The memory of the murder, buried in her mind for 20 years, came back in a flash.

From Los Angeles Times

"Democracy doesn't die in a flash - its not always a coup d'état, it can die by a thousand cuts."

From BBC