[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/instantaneous.html)

[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/) / [The school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/) / instantaneous

[← I](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/I/)

# instantaneous

«instantaneous» in Mova's school dictionary: **Happening immediately, with no delay at all** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

adjective (instantaneous); adverb «instantaneously»

### meaning for a pupil

1) Happening immediately, with no delay at all. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#m1)

2) (science) At one exact instant of time: instantaneous speed. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#m2)

### sense in the lessons

In science, light from a nearby lamp seems to arrive instantaneously (it's very fast but not truly instant); in maths and physics, instantaneous speed is the speed at a single moment, like a speedometer reading, compared with average speed over a journey. In everyday life, messages and reactions can be instantaneous. Phrases: instantaneous reaction, almost instantaneous, instantaneous speed.

### examples

- The reaction was instantaneous: the mixture fizzed straight away. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x1)
- Text messages arrive almost instantaneously. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x2)
- The speedometer shows your instantaneous speed. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x3)
- When you flick the switch, the light seems instantaneous. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x4)
- Her answer was instantaneous; she didn't need to think. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x5)
- Death of the cells was instantaneous in the boiling water. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x6)
- It was impossible to tell, the shock was so instantaneous. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/#x7)

### note

Spelling: in-stan-ta-ne-ous. Similar: «instant», «immediate». In science, average speed = distance ÷ time; instantaneous speed is the speed at one moment, which can be different.

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «instantaneous» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/I/instantaneous/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.