Commonly Confused Words: Imminent vs. Eminent vs. Immanent
Today we'll take a closer look at a trio of very classy-sounding but easily confused words: imminent, eminent, and immanent.
In fact, one of these words is not like the others. If you look carefully, you'll see that the second syllable of both imminent and eminent contain a common element. This root, -min-, is from the Latin and means "to project or stick out." Its relations and descendants include mountain and prominent.
Imminent means "about to happen":
"Well, well," said the Merciful Goddess, and there was both satisfaction and regret in hir voice. "It looks the confrontation that I predicted is imminent."
Eminent, on the other hand, literally means means "to stand out in relation to others," but it's most often used to describe a person who is outstanding within a specific group:
Kenren Taishou didn't know a lot about Tenpou Gensui, the god he'd been assigned to assist, but he knew that the fellow was considered the most eminent tactician within the Celestial Forces.
That brings us to immanent. The Latin root -man- in the middle of this one means "to remain." Immanent is a word that shows up most often in discussions of philosophy or religion, and it means, essentially, inherent. That is, something that is immanent always exists within the item or topic that's under discussion, but it doesn't derive from that thing:
"I find myself wondering," said Tenpou, "whether corruption is immanent in absolute power."
"Immanent, huh?" said Kenren. "Wow. I think you need another drink."
How can you remember which of these is which? Fellow Grammarian green-grrl suggests that you remember that imminent is something that's going to happen nearly immediately, while eminent is for someone whose reputation or position is elevated above the rest. Finally, immanent comes up mainly in philosophical contexts, such as discussions of the qualities that are inherent in humanity. It could also help to recall that immanent is related to remain.
Sources