as in curiosa
things that are important or useful for only a short time; items that were not meant to have lasting value
—usually plural
He has a large collection of old menus and other ephemera.
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ephemera
The new facility has offices and exhibition space, and also stores more than 30,000 pieces of art and ephemera.
—
Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2025
Besides offices and storage for a collection that includes 30,000 pieces of art and ephemera, the Corita Art Center, once located within Hollywood’s Immaculate Heart High School, will have, for the first time, a gallery that will also serve as a classroom for visiting students.
—Scarlet Cheng, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2025
These glassy encasements elevated each itty-bitty snapshot of kitschy urban ephemera (a taxi cab, a bodega coffee cup, a slice of pizza, a smiley-face plastic shopping bag) to a surprising elegance—undercut with impish humor.
—Marina Harss, New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2025
Uh uh, method dressing is forever, at least for Timothée Chalamet—until the next role-of-a-lifetime comes along, or the parcels of Bob Dylan ephemera pillaged from the online auction houses stop coming through the young actor’s door that is.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ephemera
Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2025
Besides offices and storage for a collection that includes 30,000 pieces of art and ephemera, the Corita Art Center, once located within Hollywood’s Immaculate Heart High School, will have, for the first time, a gallery that will also serve as a classroom for visiting students.
—Scarlet Cheng, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2025
These glassy encasements elevated each itty-bitty snapshot of kitschy urban ephemera (a taxi cab, a bodega coffee cup, a slice of pizza, a smiley-face plastic shopping bag) to a surprising elegance—undercut with impish humor.
—Marina Harss, New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2025
Uh uh, method dressing is forever, at least for Timothée Chalamet—until the next role-of-a-lifetime comes along, or the parcels of Bob Dylan ephemera pillaged from the online auction houses stop coming through the young actor’s door that is.
—Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ephemera
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ephemera
Noun
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Eschewing runways for a closed public road, the annual Sun Valley Tour de Force, next taking place July 17 through 19 in Ketchum, Idaho, allows enthusiasts to test the limits of their own exotics, such as the owner of a Bugatti Chiron who reached 253.01 mph on a previous edition’s 3.2-mile stretch.—
Viju Mathew,
Robb Report,
13 Apr. 2025
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The fish species are in constant flux, and this location is often dominated by exotics.—
Alan Taylor,
The Atlantic,
25 Feb. 2025
Noun
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But there’s much more to the apartment than a mere accumulation of objets de vertu.—
Mayer Rus,
Architectural Digest,
21 Jan. 2025
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Crawford is an inveterate collector, a hunter-gatherer par excellence, and her home is a testament to decades spent amassing oddities and objets de vertu of every stripe.—
Mayer Rus,
Architectural Digest,
28 June 2024
Noun
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Even Nuno Espirito Santo did not muster as concentrated a run of Premier League victories as his countryman, who has managed it thanks to another Wolves rarity, with the club naming an unchanged starting line-up for five successive games for the first time in more than five years.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
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Jeffers sits Christian Vázquez drew his second straight start on Saturday, a rarity for a Twins catcher, because Ryan Jeffers is dealing with a minor thumb injury.—
Betsy Helfand,
Twin Cities,
12 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Set in an emporium that buys and sells outlandish collectibles and other items, Curiosity will see celebrity guests visiting to find trinkets, curios and gifts from owners Bisram and Wehn.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
12 Feb. 2025
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Opening on Valentine’s Day, Jacqueline Sullivan’s new show is all about cups: as cherished wedding gifts, antiques sitting in your grandmother’s curio cabinet, detritus at the garage sale, and collectibles reinvented by contemporary artists.—
Morgan Meier,
Curbed,
12 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ephemera.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ephemera. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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