Moment

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: mo=ment

CIDE DICTIONARY

Moment, n. [F. moment, L. momentum, for movimentum movement, motion, moment, fr. movere to move. See Move, and cf. Momentum, Movement.].

•  A minute portion of time; a point of time; an instant; as, at that very moment.  [1913 Webster]

  "In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye."  [1913 Webster]
•  Impulsive power; force; momentum.  [1913 Webster]

  "The moments or quantities of motion in bodies."  [1913 Webster]

  "Touch, with lightest moment of impulse,
  His free will."  [1913 Webster]
•  Importance, as in influence or effect; consequence; weight or value; consideration.  [1913 Webster]

  "Matters of great moment."  [1913 Webster]

  "It is an abstruse speculation, but also of far less moment and consequence of us than the others."  [1913 Webster]
•  An essential element; a deciding point, fact, or consideration; an essential or influential circumstance.  [1913 Webster]
•  An infinitesimal change in a varying quantity; an increment or decrement.  [1913 Webster]
•  Tendency, or measure of tendency, to produce motion, esp. motion about a fixed point or axis.  [1913 Webster]

Moment of a couple (Mech.), the product of either of its forces into the perpendicular distance between them. -- Moment of a force. (Mech.) (a) With respect to a point, the product of the intensity of the force into the perpendicular distance from the point to the line of direction of the force. (b) With respect to a line, the product of that component of the force which is perpendicular to the plane passing through the line and the point of application of the force, into the shortest distance between the line and this point. (c) With respect to a plane that is parallel to the force, the product of the force into the perpendicular distance of its point of application from the plane. -- Moment of inertia, of a rotating body, the sum of the mass of each particle of matter of the body into the square of its distance from the axis of rotation; -- called also moment of rotation and moment of the mass. -- Statical moment, the product of a force into its leverage; the same as moment of a force with respect to a point, line, etc. -- Virtual moment. See under Virtual.

Syn. -- Instant; twinkling; consequence; weight; force; value; consideration; signification; avail.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Moment, n.
1 a very brief portion of time; an instant.
2 a short period of time (wait a moment) (see also MINUTE(1)).
3 an exact or particular point of time (at last the moment arrived; I came the moment you called).
4 importance (of no great moment).
5 Physics & Mech. etc. a the turning effect produced by a force acting at a distance on an object. b this effect expressed as the product of the force and the distance from its line of action to a point.

Idiom

at the moment at this time; now. in a moment
1 very soon.
2 instantly. man (or woman etc.) of the moment the one of importance at the time in question. moment of inertia Physics the quantity by which the angular acceleration of a body must be multiplied to give corresponding torque. moment of truth a time of crisis or test (orig. the final sword-thrust in a bullfight). not for a (or one) moment never; not at all. this moment immediately; at once (come here this moment).

Etymology

ME f. OF f. L momentum: see MOMENTUM

THESAURUS

Moment

a breath, abundant year, academic year, accent, advantage, annum, ascendancy, authority, avail, bissextile year, bit, breath, breathing, calendar month, calendar year, century, charisma, charm, clout, common year, compulsion, concern, concernment, consequence, consequentiality, consideration, control, coup, crack, credit, day, decade, decennary, decennium, defective year, dominance, domination, drive, driving force, effect, eminence, emphasis, enchantment, esteem, excellence, fateful moment, favor, fiscal year, flash, force, fortnight, good feeling, gravity, greatness, half a jiffy, half a mo, half a second, half a shake, high order, high rank, hold, hour, impellent, impelling force, impetus, import, importance, impulse, impulsion, incentive, incidental power, incitement, influence, influentiality, influentialness, insinuation, instant, interest, interval, irresistible force, jiff, jiffy, juncture, kairos, leadership, leap year, leverage, little, little bit, little while, lunar month, lunar year, lunation, luster, lustrum, magnetism, magnitude, man-hour, mark, mastery, materiality, merit, microsecond, millennium, millisecond, minute, moment of truth, momentousness, momentum, month, moon, motive power, no time, note, pair of winks, paramountcy, period, personality, persuasion, pith, point, potency, power, precedence, predominance, preeminence, pregnant moment, preponderance, pressure, prestige, primacy, priority, profit, prominence, propulsion, psychological moment, purchase, quarter, quinquennium, rank, regular year, reign, repute, rule, say, season, sec, second, self-importance, semester, seniority, seriousness, session, shake, short spell, short time, sidereal year, significance, signification, small space, solar year, space, span, spell, split second, spurt, stage, stature, stress, stretch, stroke, suasion, subtle influence, suggestion, sun, superiority, supremacy, sway, term, thrust, tick, time, time lag, trice, trimester, twelvemonth, twink, twinkle, twinkling, twitch, two shakes, upper hand, use, value, week, weekday, weight, weightiness, while, whip hand, wink, worth, year

ROGET THESAURUS

Moment

Importance

N importance, consequence, moment, prominence, consideration, mark, materialness, import, significance, concern, emphasis, interest, greatness, superiority, notability, weight, value, usefulness, gravity, seriousness, solemnity, no joke, no laughing matter, pressure, urgency, stress, matter of life and death, memorabilia, notabilia, great doings, red-letter day, great thing, great point, main chance, the be all and the end all, cardinal point, substance, gist, sum and substance, gravamen, head and front, important part, principal part, prominent part, essential part, half the battle, sine qua non, breath of one's nostrils, cream, salt, core, kernel, heart, nucleus, keynote, keystone, corner stone, trump card, salient points, top sawyer, first fiddle, prima donna, chief, triton among the minnows, 'it', important, of importance, momentous, material, to the point, not to be overlooked, not to be despised, not to be sneezed at, egregious, weighty, of note, notable, prominent, salient, signal, memorable, remarkable, unforgettable, worthy of remark, worthy of notice, never to be forgotten, stirring, eventful, grave, serious, earnest, noble, grand, solemn, impressive, commanding, imposing, urgent, pressing, critical, instant, paramount, essential, vital, all-absorbing, radical, cardinal, chief, main, prime, primary, principal, leading, capital, foremost, overruling, of vital importance in the front rank, first-rate, superior, considerable, marked, rare, significant, telling, trenchant, emphatic, pregnant, tanti, materially, in the main, above all, kat' exochin, par excellence, to crown all, to beat all, expende Hannibalem!.

Time

N time, duration, period, term, stage, space, span, spell, season, the whole time, the whole period, space-time, course, snap, intermediate time, while, interim, interval, pendency, intervention, intermission, intermittence, interregnum, interlude, respite, era, epoch, time of life, age, year, date, decade, moment, glass of time, sands of time, march of time, Father Time, ravages of time, arrow of time, river of time, whirligig of time, noiseless foot of time, scythe, continuing, on foot, permanent, while, whilst, during, pending, during the time, during the interval, in the course of, at that point, at that point in time, for the time being, day by day, in the time of, when, meantime, meanwhile, in the meantime, in the interim, ad interim, pendente lite, de die in diem, from day to day, from hour to hour, hourly, always, for a time, for a season, till, until, up to, yet, as far as, by that time, so far, hereunto, heretofore, prior to this, up to this point, the whole time, all the time, all along, throughout, for good, hereupon, thereupon, whereupon, then, anno Domini, A, D, ante Christum, A, C, before Christ, B, C, anno urbis conditae, A, U, C, anno regni, A, R, once upon a time, one fine morning, one fine day, one day, once, time flies, tempus fugit, time runs out, time runs against, race against time, racing the clock, time marches on, time is of the essence, time and tide wait for no man, ad calendas Groecas, panting Time toileth after him in vain, 'gainst the tooth of time and razure of oblivion, rich with the spoils of time, tempus edax rerum, the long hours come and go, the time is out of joint, Time rolls his ceaseless course, Time the foe of man's dominion, time wasted is existence, used is life, truditur dies die, volat hora per orbem, carpe diem.

Instantaneity

N instantaneity, instantaneousness, immediacy, suddenness, abruptness, moment, instant, second, minute, twinkling, trice, flash, breath, crack, jiffy, coup, burst, flash of lightning, stroke of time, epoch, time, time of day, time of night, hour, minute, very minute, very time, very hour, present time, right time, true time, exact correct time, instantaneous, momentary, sudden, immediate, instant, abrupt, discontinuous, precipitous, precipitant, precipitate, subitaneous, hasty, quick as thought, quick as lightning, quick as a flash, rapid as electricity, speedy, quick, fast, fleet, swift, lively, blitz, rapid (velocity), instantaneously, in no time, in less than no time, presto, subito, instanter, suddenly, at a stroke, like a shot, in a moment, in the blink of an eye, in the twinkling of an eye, in a trice, in one's tracks, right away, toute a l'heure, at one jump, in the same breath, per saltum, uno saltu, at once, all at once, plump, slap, at one fell swoop, at the same instant, immediately, extempore, on the moment, on the spot, on the spur of the moment, no sooner said than done, just then, slap-dash, touch and go, no sooner said than done.