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transitory

 - 2 dictionary results

tran⋅si⋅to⋅ry

[tran-si-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee, -zi-]
–adjective
1. not lasting, enduring, permanent, or eternal.
2. lasting only a short time; brief; short-lived; temporary.

Origin:
1325–75; ME transitorie < LL trānsitōrius fleeting (see transit, -tory 1 ); r. ME transitoire < MF < LL, as above


tran⋅si⋅to⋅ri⋅ly [tran-si-tawr-uh-lee, -tohr-, tran-si-tawr-, -tohr-, -zi-] , adverb
tran⋅si⋅to⋅ri⋅ness, noun


2. See temporary.


2. permanent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To transitory
tran·si·to·ry   (trān'sĭ-tôr'ē, -tōr'ē, trān'zĭ-)   
adj.  Existing or lasting only a short time; short-lived or temporary: "the disorder of his life: the succession of cities, of transitory loves" (Carson McCullers).

[Middle English transitorie, from Old French transitoire, from Late Latin trānsitōrius, from Latin, having a passageway, from trānsitus, passage; see transit.]
tran'si·to'ri·ly adv., tran'si·to'ri·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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