Synonyms for imminent
- adjective
Most common
All synonyms
Adjective
1. Impending
impending, inevitable, upcoming, immediate, threatening, forthcoming, pending, near, to come, close, proximate, around the corner, instant dated, impendent dated
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
About to happen, occur, or take place very soon, especially of something which won't last long.
Related words
- Phrases
- imminent abortion
Choose the right word
Imminent, from the Latin, with the sense of projecting over, signifies liable to happen at once, as some calamity, dangerous and close at hand. Impending, also from the Latin, with the sense of hanging over, is closely akin to imminent, but somewhat less emphatic.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- immediate The new medicine demonstrated an immediate effect.
- upcoming Aren't you going to vote in the upcoming election?
- inevitable The Foreign Minister said that war was inevitable.
- impending The impending examination loomed large in her mind.
- towards There's a trend these days towards small families.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| imminent | steady | |
| immediate | falling | |
| upcoming | rising | |
| inevitable | steady | |
| impending | steady | |
| towards | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- near1
- 5 letters
- close1
- 7 letters
- towards2, instant2, pending2
- 8 letters
- upcoming3
- 9 letters
- immediate4, impending3, proximate3, impendent
- 10 letters
- inevitable5
- 11 letters
- threatening3, forthcoming3
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (towards2 = 2 syllables).