# in the twinkling of an eye

idiom · CEFR C1

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/in-the-twinkling-of-an-eye
Updated: 2026-07-29

## Meaning

In an instant; extremely quickly.

## Examples

- The magician made the coin vanish in the twinkling of an eye.
- One bad headline and, in the twinkling of an eye, years of careful reputation-building were undone.
- The storm arrived so suddenly that the sunny afternoon turned into a dark, rainy mess in the twinkling of an eye.
- The market had seemed calm all morning, and then, in the twinkling of an eye, a single rumour sent the whole thing into free fall, wiping out in seconds what it had taken the traders months to build.

## Origin

The phrase comes from Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:52, describing the resurrection at the last trumpet: in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the dead will be raised and the living changed. A twinkling is the tiny interval of a blink or a flicker of light in the eye — Paul reaches for the briefest measurable instant he can name to convey how sudden and total the transformation will be. Long detached from that context, in the twinkling of an eye survives in English simply as a vivid way of saying instantly — something done, gone, or transformed in less time than it takes to blink.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.