List of 426 Sets of Synonyms - How they Differ - Total of 2307 Words - 244

SYNONYMS: moment, instant, minute, second, jiffy, flash.
These nouns denote a brief interval of time.

A moment is an indeterminately short but not insignificant period: I'll be with you in a moment. It took him a moment to answer.
Instant is a period of time almost too brief to detect; it implies haste and often urgency: She hesitated for just an instant. Stop it this instant.
Minute and second, used strictly, refer to measured intervals of time; often, though, minute is interchangeable with moment (Wait a minute. The plane will be arriving in a minute), and second with instant (I slipped out of the room for a few seconds to turn the oven on).
Jiffy and flash occur principally in combinations preceded by in a; in a jiffy means in a short space of time, while in a flash suggests the almost imperceptible duration of a flash of light: He was on his stool in a jiffy. She was on her feet in a flash when the doorbell rang.