1
a
: a minute portion or point of time : instant
a moment of dreadful suspense—
Graham Greene
Graham Greene
b
: a comparatively brief period of time
moments of solitude
2
a
: present time
at the moment she is at work on her fourth novel—Holiday
Holiday
b
: a time of excellence or conspicuousness
there's … some deliciously funny moments, but most of it is numbingly subtle—Jess Cagle
Jess Cagle3
: importance in influence or effect
decisions of moment must be made by our government—L. H. Evans
L. H. Evans4
obsolete
: a cause or motive of action
5
: a stage in historical or logical development
a document of one moment in the history of thought and sensibility in the nineteenth century—T. S. Eliot
T. S. Eliot6
a
: tendency or measure of tendency to produce motion especially about a point or axis
b
: the product of quantity (such as a force) and the distance to a particular axis or point
7
a
: the mean (see mean entry 4 sense 1b) of the nth powers of the deviations (see deviation sense b) of the observed values in a set of statistical data from a fixed value
b
: the expected value of a power of the deviation (see deviation sense b) of a random variable from a fixed value
Examples of moment in a Sentence
The sun was shining. Moments later, it began to rain.
It was a moment before she realized what had happened.
She stopped for a moment and peeked into the window.
It should only take a moment to fix the problem.
I'm very busy and I don't have a moment to spare.
One moment it was sunny; the next it was pouring rain.
The moment for us to act has arrived.
War seemed unavoidable at that moment in history.
She knew exactly the right moment to ask for a raise.
We had an exciting vacation. There was never a dull moment.
Recent Examples on the Web
The ruling Georgian Dream party’s billionaire founder Bidzina Ivanishvili, the opposition, and foreign diplomats had cast the election as a watershed moment that would decide if Georgia moves closer to the West or leans back towards Russia amid the war in Ukraine.
—Reuters, CNN, 26 Oct. 2024
These can be references to memes or other pop culture moments.
—Sara Belcher, People.com, 26 Oct. 2024
Seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time is one of these moments, but there are many others in store.
—Cynthia J. Drake, USA TODAY, 26 Oct. 2024
Did Freddie Freeman just become Kirk Gibson, replaying the franchise’s greatest moment 36 years and endless heartbreaks later?
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for moment 
Reuters, CNN, 26 Oct. 2024
These can be references to memes or other pop culture moments.
—Sara Belcher, People.com, 26 Oct. 2024
Seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time is one of these moments, but there are many others in store.
—Cynthia J. Drake, USA TODAY, 26 Oct. 2024
Did Freddie Freeman just become Kirk Gibson, replaying the franchise’s greatest moment 36 years and endless heartbreaks later?
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for moment
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'moment.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near moment
Cite this Entry
“Moment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moment. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
moment
noun
mo·ment
ˈmō-mənt 
1
: a brief portion of time : instant
2
a
: present time
at the moment she is working on a novel
b
: a time of importance or success
he has his moments
3
: importance, consequence
an event of great moment
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