drifting vs transient

drifting

noun
  • That which drifts. 

  • A driving technique where the driver intentionally oversteers, causing loss of traction in the rear wheels, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner. 

  • The act by which something drifts. 

adj
  • Without direction, focus, or goal. 

  • Moving aimlessly or at the mercy of external forces. 

transient

noun
  • Something that is transient. 

  • A relatively loud, non-repeating signal in an audio waveform that occurs very quickly, such as the attack of a snare drum. 

  • A homeless person. 

  • homestay 

  • A transient phenomenon, especially an electric current; a very brief surge. 

  • A module that generally remains in memory only for a short time. 

  • A person who passes through a place for a short time; a traveller; a migrant worker. 

adj
  • Intermediate. 

  • Occasional; isolated; one-off 

  • having a positive probability of being left and never being visited again. 

  • Passing or disappearing with time; transitory. 

  • Decaying with time, especially exponentially. 

  • Operating beyond itself; having an external effect. 

  • Passing through; passing from one person to another. 

  • Remaining for only a brief time. 

How often have the words drifting and transient occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )