ephemeral

/ɛˈfɛ.mə.ɹəl/

Etymology

From New Latin ephemerus, from Ancient Greek ἐφήμερος (ephḗmeros), the more common form of ἐφημέριος (ephēmérios, “of, for, or during the day, living or lasting but for a day, short-lived, temporary”), from ἐπί (epí, “on”) + ἡμέρα (hēméra, “day”).

Why this word is great

EPHEMERAL — [Adjective] Lasting for a very short time, often with a poignant sense of transience. From New Latin ephemerus, from Ancient Greek ἐφήμερος (ephḗmeros, "lasting a day"), from ἐπί (epí, "on") + ἡμέρα (hēméra, "day"). Unlike "fugacious" (which emphasizes rapid escape) or "transitory" (which implies mere passage without emotional weight), "ephemeral" carries the quiet gravity of existence measured in heartbeats. It is the mayfly’s dawn-to-dusk dance, the melting of a snowflake on warm skin, the final chord of a song lingering just beyond hearing. All light is loaned.

adj

  1. Lasting for a short period of time.“1821-1822, Vicesimus Knox, Remarks on the tendency of certain Clauses in a Bill now pending in Parliament to degrade Grammar Schools Esteem, lasting esteem, the esteem of good men, like himself, will be his reward, when the gale of ephemeral popularity shall have gradually subsided.”
  2. Existing for only one day, as with some flowers, insects, and diseases.
  3. Usually dry, but filling with water for brief periods during and after precipitation.“The graben constitutes a depositional basin and a topographic low, underlain by Cretaceous shales, in which volcanic debris accumulated in ephemeral lakes and streams in Oligocene and early Miocene time.”

noun

  1. Something which lasts for a short period of time.