つかの間・束の間|つかのまtsukanoma[0]heiban (flat)

1. expression, no-adjectivemoment; brief space of time
   がっかりしたことに、彼かれの勝利しょうりは、つかの間まの勝利しょうりにすぎなかった。↗

   To my regret, his was nothing but a short-lived triumph.

• SynonymひとときNeutralA noun for a while or stretch of time, as in 「楽しいひととき」; not necessarily short, while 「つかの間」 stresses how fleeting the moment is.
• Synonym短時間たんじかんNeutralA neutral, objective noun for a short time, as in 「短時間で終わる」; carries none of 「つかの間」's wistful tone.
• Synonym一刻いっこくNeutralA noun for a moment, as in 「一刻も早く」; mostly used in urgent contexts.
• Synonym寸時すんじWrittenA written/formal term for a moment, as in 「寸時も休まず」; usually in negative phrases and quite rare.
• Synonym寸刻すんこくWrittenA written/formal term for a moment, as in 「寸刻を争う」; mostly in set phrases stressing urgency.
• Synonym分秒ふんびょうNeutralA neutral noun for minutes and seconds, as in 「分秒を争う」; stresses time pressure rather than brevity itself.
• Synonym寸秒すんびょうWrittenA written/formal term for an extremely short time, as in 「寸秒を惜しむ」; rarely used.
• Synonym一ときNeutralA variant spelling of 「ひと時」 with the same meaning, as in 「一とき」; less commonly seen.
• Related分陰WrittenA written/formal term, as in 「分陰を惜しむ」; figuratively an extremely short span of time, and rarely used.
• Antonym長久ちょうきゅうWrittenA written/formal term for lasting permanence, as in 「武運長久」; the opposite of 「つかの間」.
• Antonym永劫えいごうWrittenA written/formal term for eons or eternity, as in 「未来永劫」; the opposite of the fleeting 「つかの間」.

Use 「つかの間」 for a fleeting stretch of time, as in 「つかの間の休息」 or 「つかの間の幸せ」, with a wistful coloring. For a while or period, say 「ひととき」; to stress urgency, 「一刻」 or 「寸刻」. The opposite is 「永劫」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. ほんの僅わずかな時間じかん。つかのあいだ。