What does temporary mean?

Definitions for temporary
ˈtɛm pəˌrɛr item·po·ra·ry

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word temporary.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. temp, temporary, temporary workeradjective

    a worker (especially in an office) hired on a temporary basis

  2. impermanent, temporaryadjective

    not permanent; not lasting

    "politics is an impermanent factor of life"- James Thurber; "impermanent palm cottages"; "a temperary arrangement"; "temporary housing"

  3. irregular, temporaryadjective

    lacking continuity or regularity

    "an irregular worker"; "employed on a temporary basis"

Wiktionary

  1. temporarynoun

    One serving for a limited time; short-term employee.

  2. temporaryadjective

    For a limited time, ephemeral, not constant; transient

  3. Etymology: From temporarius, from tempus

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Temporaryadjective

    Lasting only for a limited time.

    Etymology: tempus, Lat.

    These temporary truces were soon made and soon broken; he desired a straiter amity. Francis Bacon, Henry VII.

    The republick threatened with danger, appointed a temporary dictator, who, when the danger was over, retired again into the community. Addison.

ChatGPT

  1. temporary

    Temporary refers to something that is not permanent, set to last only for a limited period of time, or intended to serve until replaced by something else. It often applies to concepts such as conditions, positions, places, or objects.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Temporaryadjective

    lasting for a time only; existing or continuing for a limited time; not permanent; as, the patient has obtained temporary relief

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'temporary' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2698

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'temporary' in Written Corpus Frequency: #2818

  3. Adjectives Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'temporary' in Adjectives Frequency: #353

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

How to pronounce temporary?

How to say temporary in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of temporary in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of temporary in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of temporary in a Sentence

  1. John Glaser:

    By and large, this is seen as a sign of the gradual decline in the importance of the Palestinian cause among Arab regimes, the UAE hoped to get some credit for caring about the fate of the Palestinians, but since the deal only brought a temporary halt to Israeli annexation plans, the Palestinians have harshly criticized the UAE for betraying them.

  2. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko:

    There is no temporary solution.

  3. Vince Lombardi:

    Once you agree upon the price you and your family must pay for success, it enables you to ignore the minor hurts, the opponent's pressure, and the temporary failures.

  4. Dan Caldwell:

    With a lot of questions unanswered about what types of services it's going to need to provide, it makes sense that The VA use more temporary staff in the interim, however, it's important that they do it wisely, and they aren't just hiring contractors in the same way that they've created these positions that they can't fill and probably don't need.

  5. Zeng Yan:

    Today's investor sentiment in China's stock market is damped by last week's global equity sell-off, but the impact could be temporary.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

temporary#1#3606#10000

Translations for temporary

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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"temporary." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 16 Feb. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/temporary>.

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