Quick as a wink

Origin

The humble 'wink' is one of the most fleeting human actions, a momentary closure and opening of an eye that takes mere milliseconds. This natural, universally understood brevity became the perfect benchmark for speed. The phrase 'quick as a wink' emerged in the English lexicon, solidifying its popularity particularly in the 19th century, because it perfectly captured the essence of something happening so swiftly it was almost imperceptible. It's a simple yet powerful simile, leveraging a common, instantaneous human gesture to vividly convey incredible rapidity.