temporary

temporary
   permanent and embarrassing
   An evasion called in aid by politicians, soldiers, and others. Thus the British Prime Minister Macmillan described the unprecedented resignation of his three treasury ministers, Thomycroft, Powell, and Birch on 3 January 1958 as a temporary local difficulty.
   Setbacks in Vietnam for the US army tended also to be temporary:
    [The news service] caused heavy casualties, to be announced as light, routs and ambushes to be described as temporary tactical ploys. (Herr, 1997)
   So too of personal or corporate insolvency:
    Your old man's got a temporary problem of liquidity, (le Carré, 1986 — he was bankrupt)

How not to say what you mean: A dictionary of euphemisms. . 2014.

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  • temporary — tem‧po‧ra‧ry [ˈtemprəri, pri ǁ pəreri] adjective HUMAN RESOURCES 1. temporary contract/​job/​employment a contract, job etc that is only intended to continue for a short time, for example until a particular piece of work is finished 2.… …   Financial and business terms

  • Temporary — is a term that denotes a finite period of time, with a defined beginning and an end. It is derived from the Latin temporarius of seasonal character, lasting a short time, from tempus (gen. temporis ) time, season. It is the opposite of permanent …   Wikipedia

  • temporary — I adjective acting, ad tempus, brief, changeable, deciduous, elusive, ephemeral, evanescent, fleeting, fugacious, fugitive, impermanent, interim, limited, makeshift, momentary, monohemerous, nondurable, passing, perishable, provisional, shifting …   Law dictionary

  • temporary — temporary, provisional, ad interim, acting, supply can all be applied to a person holding a post for a limited time, to the post held by that person, or to his appointment. Temporary merely implies that the post is not held on tenure but may be… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • Temporary — Tem po*ra*ry, a. [L. temporarius, fr. tempus, temporis, time: cf. F. temporaire.] Lasting for a time only; existing or continuing for a limited time; not permanent; as, the patient has obtained temporary relief. [1913 Webster] Temporary… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • temporary — [tem′pə rer΄ē] adj. [L temporarius < tempus, time: see TEMPER] lasting, enjoyed, used, etc. for a time only; not permanent n. an employee hired for temporary service, esp. one hired as an office worker temporarily adv. temporariness n. SYN.… …   English World dictionary

  • temporary — temporary, temporarily Temporary is pronounced tem pǝ rǝ ri, as four syllables, with an additional stress on the ar in AmE. Temporarily has five syllables and until recently was pronounced in BrE with the stress on the first syllable, but the AmE …   Modern English usage

  • temporary — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ lasting for only a limited period. ► NOUN (pl. temporaries) ▪ a person employed on a temporary basis. DERIVATIVES temporarily adverb temporariness noun. ORIGIN Latin temporarius, from tempus time …   English terms dictionary

  • temporary — (adj.) 1540s, from L. temporarius of seasonal character, lasting a short time, from tempus (gen. temporis) time, season. The noun meaning person employed only for a time is recorded from 1848 …   Etymology dictionary

  • temporary — [adj] lasting only a short while acting, ad hoc, ad interim, alternate, BandAid*, brief, changeable, ephemeral, evanescent, fleeting, for the time being*, fugacious, fugitive, impermanent, interim, limited, make do*, makeshift*, momentary, mortal …   New thesaurus

  • temporary — That which is to last for a limited time only, as distinguished from that which is perpetual, or indefinite, in its duration. Opposite of permanent. Thus, temporary alimony is granted for the support of the wife pending the action for divorce; a… …   Black's law dictionary

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