mental lapse
Momentary cognitive failure
A mental lapse is a momentary failure of memory, attention, or judgment—a brief gap in normal cognitive function.
Someone experiencing a mental lapse might forget why they walked into a room, miss an obvious detail, or say something unintentionally foolish: I had a mental lapse and called her by the wrong name.
The phrase implies the failure is temporary and uncharacteristic rather than a sign of deeper impairment.
- forgetfulnessFailure to retain information
- memory slipBrief failure to recall
- blankWithout marks or content
- drawing a blankUnable to remember
- slipMinor error or misstep
brain fart · absent-minded · spacing out · spaced out · distraction · lost train of thought · confusion · blackout · blunder · oversight · zoning · zoned out · daze · fog · momentary · stumble · fumble · glitch
- absent-mindednessabsent-minded, forgetfulness, distraction, spacing out, zoning out
- inattentiondistracted, spacing, absent-minded, distraction, obliviousness
- Memory Lossamnesia, forgetting, forgetfulness, memory loss, memory gaps
- mental fogbrain fog, cognitive fog, fogginess, haziness, cloudiness
mental lapsetotal recall
Complete, perfect remembrance
clear thinking · mental clarity · presence of mind · mental acuity · clear-headedness
mental lapsemental sharpness
mental acuity · sharp wit · brilliance · having one's wits about one
mental lapsefull attention
Total mental engagement
rapt attention · mindfulness · alertness · sharp focus · attentiveness
mental, mentally, mentality, lapse, lapsed, lapsing, lapses, relapse, collapse