R E F E R E N C E S
Instant n. 1. an infinitesimal or very short space of time; a moment. 2. a particular moment: at the instant of contact. 3. the present or current month. Abbr.: inst. Cf. proximo, ultimo. -adj. 4. succeeding without any interval of time; immediate, instant relief. 5. pressing or urgent: instant need. 6. [of a food] requiring on ly water, milk, etc., to prepare. 7. Archaic. present, curent. -adv. 8. instantly. [late ME < L instant- (s. of instáns) present, urgent [prp. of instáre] = in- IN-2 + stá- stand + -ant- -ANT]
-Syn. 1. second, twinkling, flash, jiffy, trice.
Instance. n. 1. a case or example of anything: fresh instances of oppression. 2. Law. prosecution of a case [used chiefly in the phrase court of first instance. 3. Archaic, urgency. 4. Obs. an impelling motive. 5. at the instance of, at the urging or suggestion of. 6. For instance, as an example; for example. -v.t. 7. to cite as an instance or example. 8. to exemplify by an instance. -v.i. 9. Archaic. to cite as an instance. [ME < L instantia presence, urgency [ML: case, example]. See Instant, -ance. -Syn. 1. See case1.
[Urdang, Laurence, ed. Random House Dictionary of The English Language. New York: Random House, 1968.]
Copyright
The contents of this site, including all images and text, are for personal, educational, non-commercial use only. The contents of this site may not be reproduced in any form without proper reference to Text, Author, Publisher, and Date of Publication [and page #s when suitable].