MOMENT

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does moment mean? 

• MOMENT (noun)
  The noun MOMENT has 6 senses:

1. a particular point in time

2. an indefinitely short time

3. at this time

4. having important effects or influence

5. a turning force produced by an object acting at a distance (or a measure of that force)

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

  Familiarity information: MOMENT used as a noun is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MOMENT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A particular point in time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

instant; minute; moment; second

Context example:

the moment he arrived the party began

Hypernyms ("moment" is a kind of...):

point; point in time (an instant of time)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "moment"):

climax; culmination (the decisive moment in a novel or play)

eleventh hour; last minute (the latest possible moment)

moment of truth (a crucial moment on which much depends)

moment of truth (the moment in a bullfight when the matador kills the bull)

pinpoint (a very brief moment)

time (a suitable moment)

psychological moment (the most appropriate time for achieving a desired effect)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An indefinitely short time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

bit; minute; mo; moment; second

Context example:

in just a bit

Hypernyms ("moment" is a kind of...):

time (an indefinite period (usually marked by specific attributes or activities))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "moment"):

blink of an eye; flash; heartbeat; instant; jiffy; New York minute; split second; trice; twinkling; wink (a very short time (as the time it takes the eye to blink or the heart to beat))

Derivation:

momentaneous; momentary (lasting for a markedly brief time)

Sense 3

Meaning:

At this time

Classified under:

Nouns denoting time and temporal relations

Synonyms:

here and now; moment; present moment

Context example:

she is studying at the moment

Hypernyms ("moment" is a kind of...):

nowadays; present (the period of time that is happening now; any continuous stretch of time including the moment of speech)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Having important effects or influence

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

consequence; import; moment

Context example:

that result is of no consequence

Hypernyms ("moment" is a kind of...):

significance (the quality of being significant)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "moment"):

matter ((used with negation) having consequence)

hell to pay (dire consequences)

Derivation:

momentous (of very great significance)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A turning force produced by an object acting at a distance (or a measure of that force)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural phenomena

Hypernyms ("moment" is a kind of...):

force ((physics) the influence that produces a change in a physical quantity)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "moment"):

moment of inertia (the tendency of a body to resist angular acceleration)

moment of a couple (given two equal and opposite forces, the product of the force and the distance between them)

dipole moment (the moment of a dipole)

Sense 6

Meaning:

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

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("moment" is a kind of...):

statistic (a datum that can be represented numerically)

Domain category:

statistics (a branch of applied mathematics concerned with the collection and interpretation of quantitative data and the use of probability theory to estimate population parameters)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "moment"):

second moment (the expected value of the square of the deviations of a random variable from the point of origin)

variance (the second moment around the mean; the expected value of the square of the deviations of a random variable from its mean value)

 Context examples 

Holmes was for the moment as startled as I. His hand closed like a vice upon my wrist in his agitation.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Yes, I am all that, Mr. Holmes; and, in addition, I am the most unfortunate man at this moment in London.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

He turned and silently gazed after the old master. Skiff Miller was rounding the curve. In a moment he would be gone from view.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

At this moment, as he opened his mouth to speak, puff after puff struck the schooner and pressed her side under.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

He had waited long for this moment.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

I heard Glumdalclitch give a shriek at the moment he was carrying me out.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

This moment in time is rare!

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

He, without a moment’s warning, was bundled out of his room, and from that time onward there were always at least two of you there to prevent him from regaining his treasure.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

There was no possibility of an opiate just at present, and no need of one; and so, without a moment's delay, we began the operation.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

And in that moment the sapling reared its slender length upright and the rabbit soared dancing in the air again.

(White Fang, by Jack London)