A. Informal expressions relating to time

We only meet once in a blue moon. [very infrequently]
He’s spent all his born days in the village. [all his life]
I’ll be with you in a mo / in a sec / in a tick / in less than no time / in a jiffy. [very soon] (mo and sec are short for ‘moment’ and ‘second’]
Clive’s been working here for donkey’s years / since the year dot. [for a long time]
We can talk about this till the cows come home, but I’m not going to change my mind. [for ever]
Are you sure she gave you the book for keeps / for good? [to keep for ever]
She turned up just in the nick of time – she very nearly missed the train. [only just in time]
He was a famous athlete but now he’s over the hill / past it. [too old]
She was a child film star but was already a has-been by the age of 20. [person who is no longer famous]
Sue did her homework in a flash / at a rate of knots. [very quickly]

B. Adjectives relating to the passing of time

Adjective	Meaning	Common collocations
fleeting	brief or quick	glimpse, visit, smile, moment, appearance
lengthy	continuing for a long time	process, investigation, discussions, negotiations, delays
transient	lasting for only a short time; formal	effect, population, feeling, pleasure
persistent	lasting for a long time or hard to stop or get rid of	cough, problems, rumour, smell, accusations, critic, offender, failure, gossip
inexorable	continuing without hope of being stopped; formal	rise, slide, decline, pressure, advance of time
incipient	just beginning; formal	panic, rage, rebellion, stages, wrinkles, dementia
protracted	lasting for a long time or made to last longer; formal	negotiations, discussions, argument
lingering	taking a long time to leave or disappear	perfume, kiss, smile

Terrorists carried out simultaneous attacks. [happening at the same time]
Schools were closed for the duration of the President’s visit. [amount of time that it lasted]
We shouldn’t prolong the meeting; we’ve already discussed the matter for an hour. [make it last longer]
I’m sorry, I can’t change the date at such short notice. [just a short time before it is due to happen]
The teacher repeatedly warned the student that she would fail her exam. [many times]