Webster's English Dictionary

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transient

1. tran.sient \-*nt\ aj [L transeunt-, transiens, prp. of transire to go 
   across, pass], fr. trans- + ire to go - more at ISSUE 1a: passing esp. 
   quickly into and out of existence : TRANSITORY, (MSHORT-LIVED 1b: passing 
   through or by a place with only a brief stay or sojourn  2: affecting 
   something or producing results beyond itself FLEETING, EVANESCENT: 
   TRANSIENT applies to what is short in duration and passes quickly; 
   TRANSITORY suggests the inevitability of changing, ending, or dying out; 
   EPHEMERAL implies striking brevity of life or duration; MOMENTARY suggests 
   coming and going quickly and being therefore merely a brief interruption of 
   a more enduring state; FUGITIVE and FLEETING imply passing so quickly as to 
   make apprehending difficult; EVANESCENT suggests vanishing almost as it 
   comes and may connote an airy or fragile quality - tran.sient.ly av SYN syn 
   TRANSITORY, EPHEMERAL, MOMENTARY, FUGITIVE, 
2. transient n 1: one that is transient : as  1a: a transient guest  1b: a 
   person traveling about usu. in search of work  2a: a temporary oscillation 
   that occurs in a circuit because of a sudden ch ange of voltage or of load 
   2b: a transient current or voltage