Ephemeral

Ephemeral

This word of the day
An experience of time
The briefest sort..
I wonder
If this old word
Contained a hint
Of time's illusion
When seen and heard
Standing alone 
With hands and bells 
On a village tower... 



Ephemeral
audio for word of the day
[ə-fem-ər-əl]
Part of speech: adjective
Origin: greek, 16th century
Fleeting or short-lived
Lasting for a single day

About Ephemeral
You might think of a 'jiffy' as a generally ephemeral — or short-lived, non-permanent — measurement of time, but did you know it's an actual, measurable unit? It accounts for the time it takes for light to travel the distance of a single nucleon.
Did you Know?
While ephemeral has come to describe anything fleeting or not lasting, it comes from a Greek word that specifically means "lasting a day." We now think of ephemeral things as lasting far less time, often just a passing moment.