different between mundane vs ephemeral

English

Etymology

From Middle English mondeyne, from Old French mondain, from Late Latin mundanus, from Latin mundus (“world”). Compare Danish mondæn.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /m?n?de?n/
• Rhymes: -e?n

Adjective

mundane (comparative mundaner, superlative mundanest)

1. Worldly, earthly, profane, vulgar as opposed to heavenly.

   Synonym: worldly

   Antonyms: heavenly, arcane

2. Pertaining to the Universe, cosmos or physical reality, as opposed to the spiritual world.
   • 1662 Thomas Salusbury, Galileo's Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (Dialogue 2):

     Amongst mundane bodies, six there are that do perpetually move, and they are the six Planets; of the rest, that is, of the Earth, Sun, and fixed Stars, it is disputable which of them moveth, and which stands still.

3. Ordinary; not new.

   Synonyms: banal, boring, commonplace, everyday, routine, workaday, jejune, pedestrian; see also Thesaurus:boring, Thesaurus:common

4. Tedious; repetitive and boring.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:boring

Derived terms

• submundane
• supermundane
• transmundane
• ultramundane

Translations

References

• John A. Simpson and Edward S. C. Weiner, editors (1989) , “mundane”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, ?ISBN

Noun

mundane (plural mundanes)

1. An unremarkable, ordinary human being.
2. (slang, derogatory, in various subcultures) A person considered to be "normal", part of the mainstream culture, outside the subculture, not part of the elite group.
   • 1996, "Angel of Death", furries vs. mundanes (discussion on Internet newsgroup alt.fan.furry)

     Some people just think your ^[sic] a sicko or something for enjoying the art. I know that alot ^[sic] of the time, I would rather see some nice nude furrygirls instead of pictures of nude mundanes.

3. (fandom slang) The world outside fandom; the normal, mainstream world.
4. (derogatory, satanism) A person not a Satanist.

Synonyms

• (ordinary person): See Thesaurus:mundane
• (mainstream person): See Thesaurus:mainstreamer

Derived terms

• mundanely
• mundaneness
• mundanity

See also

• mundane on Wikipedia.Wikipedia Article on the use of “mundane” as a derogatory term.

Anagrams

• unnamed

Latin

Adjective

mund?ne

1. vocative masculine singular of mund?nus

English

Etymology

From New Latin ephemerus, from Ancient Greek ???????? (eph?meros), the more common form of ????????? (eph?mérios, “of, for, or during the day, living or lasting but for a day, short-lived, temporary”), from ??? (epí, “on”) + ????? (h?méra, “day”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??f?.m?.??l/, /??f?.m?.??l/
• Rhymes: -???l

Noun

ephemeral (plural ephemerals)

1. Something which lasts for a short period of time.

   Synonym: ephemeron

Derived terms

• spring ephemeral

Adjective

ephemeral (comparative more ephemeral, superlative most ephemeral)

1. Lasting for a short period of time.

   Synonyms: temporary, transitory, fleeting, evanescent, momentary, short-lived, short, volatile; see also Thesaurus:ephemeral

   Antonyms: permanent, eternal, everlasting, timeless

   • 1821-1822, Vicesimus Knox, Remarks on the tendency of certain Clauses in a Bill now pending in Parliament to degrade Grammar Schools

     Esteem, lasting esteem, the esteem of good men, like himself, will be his reward, when the gale of ephemeral popularity shall have gradually subsided.

   • 1853, James Stephen, Lecture on the right use of Books

     sentences not of ephemeral, but of eternal, efficacy
2. (biology) Existing for only one day, as with some flowers, insects, and diseases.
3. (geology, of a body of water) Usually dry, but filling with water for brief periods during and after precipitation.
   • 1986, W.H. Raymond, "Clinoptilolite Deposit in the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, South Dakota, U.S.A.", in Y?ichi Murakami et al. (editors), New Developments in Zeolite Science and Technology (conference proceedings), Elsevier, ?ISBN, page 80:

     The graben constitutes a depositional basin and a topographic low, underlain by Cretaceous shales, in which volcanic debris accumulated in ephemeral lakes and streams in Oligocene and early Miocene time.

Derived terms

• ephemerally

Related terms

• ephemera
• ephemeron
• ephemerality
• hemeral

Translations

Further reading

• ephemeral in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• ephemeral in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• ephemeral on Wikipedia.Wikipedia