quick span

USAGE SUMMARY

"quick span" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it to describe a short duration of time or a brief period. For example: "The project was completed in a quick span, surprising everyone." Alternative expressions include "short period" and "brief duration."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Wiki

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

But "Fun Home," which was perhaps an even bigger long shot than "Hamilton," not only won the Tony for best musical but recouped its capitalization in the relatively quick span of eight months.

Los Angeles Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

57 human-written examples

Madonna also had her quickest span of back-to-back number-ones since 1990, when "Vogue" reached the top of the charts just seven weeks after "Keep It Together".

Wikipedia

"You might almost say quick attention span," Prof. Mary C. Potter of the department of brain and cognitive sciences at M.I.T. said in a phone interview.

The New York Times

In a quick two-minute span, researchers captured the crab break both of the bird's wings, crush its bones, and render it helpless.

Vice

Jacksonville, Minnesota and Denver have done better over the span.... Quick starts are nothing new to the Dolphins, but then neither are season-ending slumps.

The New York Times - Sports

Tap the shutter button in normal or selfie mode, and Boomerang captures five quick shots over the span of a second.

TechCrunch

These uncooperative and problematic behaviors may include hyperactivity, quick frustration, short attention span, impulsivity, agitation, anger, self-stimulatory, self-injurious, repetitive, aggressive, and disruptive behaviors as well as temper tantrums [ 4, 5].

BioMed Research International

Castro says he can easily identify the symptoms of trauma among his students: quick tempers, short attention spans, glassy looks.

Vice

Many supporters of George W. Bush have apparently never observed or acknowledged his megalomania, sadism, immaturity, aggression, recklessness, quick temper, bravado, short attention span, sarcasm, compulsivity, jitteriness, darting eyes, and more.

Huffington Post

In a playing career that spanned 1926 51, the quick, aggressive Ames, as a batsman, scored 37,248 runs (average 43.51) and 102 centuries, including 2,434 runs (average 40.56) and eight centuries in test matches.

Encyclopedia Britannica

So in case you're as in the dark as the sea creatures at the bottom of said canyons are (and I was), here's a quick primer: the Bering Sea spans nearly 800,000 square miles between Alaska and Siberia and is among one of the wildest regions in the world.

Huffington Post

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Pair the phrase with a prepositional modifier, such as "quick span of [time unit]", to provide context to the duration being described.

Common error

Do not use "quick span" without a following descriptor if the audience cannot infer the unit of time. For instance, saying 'it happened in a quick span' is less effective than 'it happened in a "quick span of days"'.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "quick span" functions as an adjective-noun compound where "quick" modifies the noun "span" to characterize a time interval as brief or rapidly occurring. According to Ludwig, while it appears in high-quality journalism, it is frequently part of a larger prepositional phrase like "quick span of time" or "quick span of a second".

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

65%

Wiki

15%

Science

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

5%

Social Media

3%

Formal & Business

2%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In conclusion, "quick span" is a grammatically correct and versatile phrase used primarily in Neutral and Journalistic contexts to describe rapid time intervals. While Ludwig data shows it is less frequent than idioms like "short span", it carries a unique emphasis on the speed of actions within a timeframe. Writers should ensure they provide a clear temporal unit (like months or seconds) when using it to avoid ambiguity. Overall, it is a sophisticated alternative for emphasizing fast-paced changes or brief durations.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

short span

Uses a more standard adjective for length to describe duration

brief period

A more formal and common substitute for describing a small window of time

short duration

Technical term focusing on the length of time an event lasts

rapid time frame

Emphasizes the speed of occurrences within a set period

compressed timeline

Suggests a period that has been shortened or is unusually fast

short interval

Refers specifically to the time between two points or events

limited window

Stresses the restriction or scarcity of the available time

brief interval

Combines formality with a focus on the gap between events

short amount of time

A very common and plain way to express the same idea

narrow time span

Emphasizes the limited nature of the time range

FAQs

How do I use "quick span" in a sentence?

You can use it to describe a short duration, such as: "The company regained its market share in the relatively "quick span of eight months"."

What is the difference between "quick span" and "short span"?

While both are correct, "short span" is more common and focuses on the length, whereas "quick span" emphasizes the speed of the events occurring within that time.

Is it better to say "short duration" instead?

If you are writing for a scientific or formal audience, "short duration" is often preferred for its precision and neutral tone.

Can I use "quick span" to describe attention?

Yes, it is often seen in the context of a "quick attention span", though "short attention span" is the idiomatic standard.