transient

  1. Adjective.  Passing or disappearing with time; transitory.
  2. Adjective.  Remaining for only a brief time.
  3. Adjective.  (physics) Decaying with time, especially exponentially.
  4. Adjective.  (mathematics, stochastic processes) having a positive probability of being left and never being visited again.
  5. Adjective.  Occasional; isolated; one-off; individual.
  6. Adjective.  Passing through; passing from one person to another.
  7. Adjective.  (philosophy) Operating beyond itself; having an external effect.
  8. Noun.  Something which is transient.
  9. Noun.  (physics) A transient phenomenon, especially an electric current; a very brief surge.
  10. Noun.  (acoustics) A relatively loud, non-repeating signal in an audio waveform which occurs very quickly, such as the attack of a snare drum.
  11. Noun.  A person who passes through a place for a short time; a traveller; a migrant worker.
  12. Noun.  An unhoused person.

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This entry was last updated on RefTopia from its source on 3/20/2012.