in the wink of an eye
1
3.5
- idiom
- Informal
:
en un abrir y cerrar de ojos
- Having made this declaration, the noble, sorrowful, and mighty Frederick, the lawful ruler of all the lands of this region, ordered rose water to be brought, rinsed his hands in it, and in the wink of an eye vanished.
- then in the wink of an eye
Examples
-
He finished the project in the wink of an eye, surprising everyone with his speed.
-
It had been only two months since the shooting, and she knew that whatever her feeling, it wasn't proper to go from viola to violin in the wink of an eye.
Fiction book (1990) -
The Batmobile screams past in the wink of an eye.
Fiction book (1992) -
In the wink of an eye, he attacks, leaping on her.
Fiction book (1996) -
She was up and around the glass-topped desk in the wink of an eye.
Fiction book (1991) -
The crowd cheered, and in the wink of an eye, the magician made the rabbit disappear.
-
Her mood changed in the wink of an eye when she received the good news.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Quickly and without warning
∞
1.0
At once without waiting
987
2.7
Very quickly and without warning
446
1.4
In a very short time
344
1.0
Immediately without delay
330
1.0
Right away without any delay
232
1.0
A very short moment that passes quickly
145
3.3
In a sudden way that gives no warning
121
2.8
Immediately at the exact place where something happens, often needing a quick response
116
7.1
Happens quickly and without warning
50
3.3
Very quickly, in almost no time
35
2.5
Very quickly in a single moment
35
2.8
A very short moment that passes almost instantly
25
5.6
Happen at once without delay
14
7.6
A single sudden action that happens all at once
13
3.0
Happening suddenly and without warning
4
6.0
Very quickly and without hesitation
3
3.0
It happens very quickly with little effort
1
3.8
A very short time when things change suddenly
1
3.8
In a very short time
1
3.2
A very short moment like the quick closing and opening of an eyelid
1
2.0
Happen very fast
Very quickly, in almost no time
Happen very quickly in the short time it takes to blink an eye
Happens very quickly
In a very short time
Antonyms
How Quickly
330
1.0
- Informal
50
3.3
- Informal
1
3.5
- Informal
35
2.5
∞
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
in + the + wink + of + an + eye
The phrase literally builds from 'wink' (a very brief closure of the eye, hence a very short time) and 'eye', so the overall meaning 'very quickly; in an instant' is directly inferable from the constituents and the preposition 'in'. This compositional pattern (compare 'in the blink of an eye') is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the individual words would readily understand the idiom.
Etymology
In the wink of an eye comes from the tiny, quick action of a wink — closing one eye for only a moment. Because a wink happens almost instantly, the saying came to mean 'very quickly' or 'suddenly'.