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 Ralf
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 #3 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 14:01 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hi sophie,
Your sentence is fine.
any minute/moment(now)=momently. |
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Pamela
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| #4 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 14:49 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hi Pamela
I doubt that you would find many Americans using 'momently', and if you did, it would probably be fairly literary.
In AmE, we frequently use 'momentarily' to mean 'very soon' -- especially in spoken English.
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Yankee
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| #5 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 14:52 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hi
in BrE "any minute now" may be said without now. Also in BrE momentarily strikes me as old fashioned as well.
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Stew.t.
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| #6 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 14:55 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hi Stew
What about 'momently' in BE? I don't think I've ever actually heard anyone use that word over here.
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Yankee
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| #7 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 15:04 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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| Yankee wrote: |
Hi Pamela
I doubt that you would find many Americans using 'momently', and if you did, it would probably be fairly literary.
In AmE, we frequently use 'momentarily' to mean 'very soon' -- especially in spoken English.
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I see, Amy... |
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Pamela
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| #8 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 16:27 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hi Amy
You are right as ever, momently is a new coinage.
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| #9 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 16:42 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hi,
'Momentarily' to me means for the moment in the sense of 'not for long' as in: She was momentarily lost for words when they gave her first prize.
Alan
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| #10 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 17:22 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Firstly, thank you everybody for answering my question.
In my dictionary, "momentarily" have both meanings: "not for long" and "very soon". What do you think about it?
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Sophie
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| #11 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 18:44 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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| Alan wrote: |
| 'Momentarily' to me means for the moment in the sense of 'not for long' as in: She was momentarily lost for words when they gave her first prize. |
'Momentarily' is also used that way here in the US. Basically, it would be the context that determines which meaning is intended.
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Yankee
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| #12 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 18:51 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Interestingly, "momently" and "momentarily" both date from the 17th century; the latter's sense of "instantly" is obsolete in BrE, but may well return under pressure from AmE.
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MrPedantic
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| #13 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 18:51 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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| sophie wrote: |
Firstly, thank you everybody for answering my question.
In my dictionary, "momentarily" have both meanings: "not for long" and "very soon". What do you think about it? |
Hi Sophie
Not all "usage experts" agree that using momentarily to mean 'very soon' is "acceptable" in formal written English. Some do, some don't.
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Yankee
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| #14 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 19:09 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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That's an interesting little tidbit of information, MrP.
The following site lists 'momentarily' as an example of a difference between BE and AmE. Interestingly, the entry comes directly after 'molly-coddled'. 
http://english2american.com/dictionary/m.html
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Yankee
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| #15 (permalink) Sun Jul 13, 2008 22:16 pm Meaning of "get under way" |
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Hello Amy,
Yes, "momentarily" is recognised as AmE over here. (For a BrE unfamiliar with the usage, it can be disconcerting to be told by a switchboard operator that they'll connect you momentarily.)
"Molly-coddling" on the other hand is an all too common phenomenon.
MrP |
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