Imminent

//ˈɪmɪnənt// adj

adj ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    About to happen, occur, or take place very soon, especially of something which won't last long.

    "To courageous, self-reliant men, with confidence in the power of free and fearless reasoning applied through the processes of popular government, no danger flowing from speech can be deemed clear and present unless the incidence of the evil apprehended is so imminent that it may befall before there is opportunity for full discussion."

Adjective
  1. 1
    close in time; about to occur wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
close at handimmediateimpendinginevitableabout to beabusive

Example

More examples

"According to the radio, a storm is imminent in the North."

Etymology

From the present participle of Latin imminēre (“to overhang”), from mineō ("to project, overhang"), related to minae (English menace) and mons (English mount). Compare with eminent.

Related phrases

imminent abortiontake place

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.