Moment vs. Instant — What's the Difference?

A brief, indefinite interval of time.

In physics and the philosophy of science, instant refers to an infinitesimal interval in time, whose passage is instantaneous. In ordinary speech, an instant has been defined as "a point or very short space of time," a notion deriving from its etymological source, the Latin verb instare, from in- + stare ('to stand'), meaning 'to stand upon or near.'The continuous nature of time and its infinite divisibility was addressed by Aristotle in his Physics, where he wrote on Zeno's paradoxes.

A specific point in time, especially the present time

A period of time so short as to be almost imperceptible.

A point in time that is gratifying or noteworthy

A particular or precise time

An occasion affording an opportunity

Abbr. inst. The current month

A particular period of importance, influence, or significance in a series of events or developments

A food or beverage designed for quick preparation.

Outstanding significance or value; importance

Occurring at once; immediate

A brief period of time that is characterized by a quality, such as excellence, suitability, or distinction

Imperative; urgent

An essential or constituent element, as of a complex idea.

Now under consideration; present.

A phase or aspect of a logically developing process.

Commercially prepared or processed for quick and easy final preparation

The product of a quantity, such as force or mass, and its perpendicular distance from a reference point.

Appearing, done, or taking place with great quickness and ease

The tendency to cause rotation about a point or axis.

Quickly and easily resolved or determined

(Statistics) The expected value of a positive integer power of a random variable. The first moment of a random variable is the mean of its probability distribution.

At once; instantly.

A brief, unspecified amount of time.

A very short period of time; a moment.

The smallest portion of time; an instant.

A single, usually precise, point in time.

(figurative) Weight or importance.

A beverage or food which has been pre-processed to reduce preparation time, especially instant coffee.

Ellipsis of moment of force

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A definite period of time, specifically one-tenth of a point, or one-fortieth or one-fiftieth of an hour.

(dated) Impending; imminent.

A petit mal episode; such a spell.

(dated) Urgent; pressing; acute.

(colloquial) A fit; a brief tantrum.

(dated) Insistent; persistent.

(math) An infinitesimal change in a varying quantity; an increment or decrement.

(legal) Present; current; extant.

(math) A quantitative measure of the shape of a set of points.

Occurring immediately; immediate; present.

(As in "X moment") An embarrassing event, supposed to be characteristic of some person, group, or situation.

Lasting for a short moment; momentary; short-lived.

A minute portion of time; a point of time; an instant; as, at that very moment.

Very quickly and easily prepared.

Impulsive power; force; momentum.

Of the current month.

Importance, as in influence or effect; consequence; weight or value; consideration.

(poetic) At once; immediately.

An essential element; a deciding point, fact, or consideration; an essential or influential circumstance.

Pressing; urgent; importunate; earnest.

An infinitesimal change in a varying quantity; an increment or decrement.

Closely pressing or impending in respect to time; not deferred; immediate; without delay.

Tendency, or measure of tendency, to produce motion, esp. motion about a fixed point or axis.

Present; current.

A particular point in time;

Instantly.

An indefinitely short time;

A point in time; a moment; a portion of time too short to be estimated; also, any particular moment; as, teh situation may change in an instant.

At this time;

A very short time (as the time it takes the eye blink or the heart to beat);

Having important effects or influence;

A particular point in time;

The moment of a couple is the product of its force and the distance between its opposing forces

Occurring with no delay;

The n-th moment of a distribution is the expected value of the n-th power of the deviations from a fixed value

In or of the present month;

Demanding attention;