flash in the pan
A transient occurrence with no long-term impactA transient occurrence with no long-term impact.
» It's a flash in the pan.
Naityahia · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
2 senses(figuratively)A transient occurrence with no long-term impact.
The concept turned out to be merely a flash in the pan and is no longer used.
For quotations using this term, see Citations:flash in the pan.
Strohfeuer, Eintagsfliege
мимолетный успехmimoletnyj uspex, однодневкаodnodnevka
(figuratively)A career notable for early success that is not followed by any significant accomplishment.
He was named Best New Director of 1940, but his career was a flash in the pan.
- someone who enjoys transient success but then fails
Examples
3 sentencesTranslations
8 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 1
Origin
From the days of flintlock firearms, where the main charge was intended to be fired by a sFrom the days of flintlock firearms, where the main charge was intended to be fired by a small charge of gunpowder in the flash pan. If the resultant fire did not pass through the touch hole and ignite the main charge, it produced noise and smoke, but no substantial effect, and was termed a flash in the pan. Sometimes called fluff in the pan, the term refers to any ineffectual, short, spasmodic effort that dies in the attempt, such as an explosion of priming in the lockpan of a gun while the gun itself does not go off.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: flashes in the pan / flash in the pans| Singular | flash in the pan |
|---|---|
| Plural | flashes in the pan / flash in the pans |
regular
Word family
5 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Plural nouns — Because its plural is irregular