time
♦♦♦ time /t'aɪm/ (times timing timed)
1 [N-UNCOUNT]
Time is what we measure in minutes, hours, days, and years.
...a two-week period of time...
Time passed, and still Ma did not appear...
The social significance of religion has changed over time.
2 [N-SING] wh/the N
You use time to ask or talk about a specific point in the day, which can be stated in hours and minutes and is shown on clocks.
`What time is it?'--`Eight o'clock.'...
He asked me the time...
What time did he leave?...
The time is now 19 minutes past the hour.
3 [N-COUNT]
The time when something happens is the point in the day when it happens or is supposed to happen.
Departure times are 08:15 from St Quay, and 18:15 from St Helier.
see also opening time
4 [N-UNCOUNT] supp N
You use time to refer to the system of expressing time and counting hours that is used in a particular part of the world.
The incident happened just after ten o'clock local time.
5 [N-UNCOUNT] also a N
You use time to refer to the period that you spend doing something or when something has been happening.
Adam spent a lot of time in his grandfather's office...
He wouldn't have the time or money to take care of me...
Listen to me, I haven't got much time...
The route was blocked for some time...
For a long time I didn't tell anyone...
A short time later they sat down to eat...
6 [N-SING] a N
If you say that something has been happening for a time, you mean that it has been happening for a fairly long period of time.
He stayed for quite a time...
After a time they came to a pond.
7 [N-COUNT] with supp, oft prep N
You use time to refer to a period of time or a point in time, when you are describing what is happening then. For example, if something happened at a particular time, that is when it happened. If it happens at all times, it always happens.
We were in the same college, which was male-only at that time...
By this time he was thirty...
It was a time of terrible uncertainty...
Homes are more affordable than at any time in the past five years...
It seemed like a good time to tell her...
8 [N-COUNT] with supp, usu adj N, N of n
You use time or times to talk about a particular period in history or in your life.
We'll be alone together, quite like old times...
We are in one of the most severe recessions in modern times...
9 [N-PLURAL] the N
You can use the times to refer to the present time and to modern fashions, tastes, and developments. For example, if you say that someone keeps up with the times, you mean they are fashionable or aware of modern developments. If you say they are behind the times, you mean they are unfashionable or not aware of them.
This approach is now seriously out of step with the times...
Johnny has changed his image to fit the times.
10 [N-COUNT] adj N
When you describe the time that you had on a particular occasion or during a particular part of your life, you are describing the sort of experience that you had then.
Sarah and I had a great time while the kids were away...
She's had a really tough time the last year and a half...
11 [N-SING] poss N
Your time is the amount of time that you have to live, or to do a particular thing.
Now Martin has begun to suffer the effects of AIDS, and he says his time is running out...
12 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N for n, N to-inf, N that
If you say it is time for something, time to do something, or time you did something, you mean that this thing ought to happen or be done now.
Opinion polls indicated a feeling among the public that it was time for a change...
It was time for him to go to work...
This was no time to make a speech...
13 [N-COUNT] with supp
When you talk about a time when something happens, you are referring to a specific occasion when it happens.
Every time she travels on the bus it's delayed by at least three hours...
The last time I saw her was about sixteen years ago...
14 [N-COUNT] usu num/ord N
You use time after numbers to say how often something happens.
It was her job to make tea three times a day...
15 [N-PLURAL] num N compar, num N as adj/adv, num N n
You use times after numbers when comparing one thing to another and saying, for example, how much bigger, smaller, better, or worse it is.
Its profits are rising four times faster than the average company...
...an area five times the size of Britain.
16 [CONJ]
You use times in arithmetic to link numbers or amounts that are multiplied together to reach a total.
Four times six is 24.
17 [N-COUNT] with supp, oft poss N, N of n
Someone's time in a race is the amount of time it takes them to finish the race.
He was over a second faster than his previous best time...
18 [N-UNCOUNT] usu supp N, oft in N
The time of a piece of music is the number of beats that the piece has in each bar.
A reel is in four-four time, and a jig is in six-eight time.
19 [VERB] V n to-inf, V n for n, V n adv, V-ed, also V n
If you time something for a particular time, you plan or decide to do it or cause it to happen at this time.
He timed the election to coincide with new measures to boost the economy...
We had timed our visit for March 7...
He had timed his intervention well...
Operation Amazon is timed to coincide with the start of the dry season.
20 [VERB] V n
If you time an action or activity, you measure how long someone takes to do it or how long it lasts.
He timed each performance with a stop-watch.
21
see also timing
22 [PHRASE] it v-link PHR that, PHR as reply
If you say it is about time that something was done, you are saying in an emphatic way that it should happen or be done now, and really should have happened or been done sooner.
It's about time a few movie makers with original ideas were given a chance...
23 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If you do something ahead of time, you do it before a particular event or before you need to, in order to be well prepared.
Find out ahead of time what regulations apply to your situation.
24 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, oft PHR in -ing
If someone is ahead of their time or before their time, they have new ideas a long time before other people start to think in the same way.
My mother was ahead of her time. She surrounded me with culture and art.
25 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If something happens or is done all the time, it happens or is done continually.
We can't be together all the time...
= continually
26 [PHRASE] amount PHR
You say at a time after an amount to say how many things or how much of something is involved in one action, place, or group.
Beat in the eggs, one at a time...
27 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If something could happen at any time, it is possible that it will happen very soon, though nobody can predict exactly when.
Conditions are still very tense and the fighting could escalate at any time.
28 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
You say at the best of times when you are making a negative or critical comment to emphasize that it is true even when the circumstances are as favourable as possible.
A trade war would be bad at the best of times, but in the current economic climate, it would be a disaster.
29 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something was the case at one time, you mean that it was the case during a particular period in the past.
At one time 400 men, women and children lived in the village.
30 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If two or more things exist, happen, or are true at the same time, they exist, happen, or are true together although they seem to contradict each other.
I was afraid of her, but at the same time I really liked her...
31 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
At the same time is used to introduce a statement that slightly changes or contradicts the previous statement.
I don't think I set out to come up with a different sound for each album. At the same time, I do have a sense of what is right for the moment.
32 [PHRASE] PHR with cl/group
You use at times to say that something happens or is true on some occasions or at some moments.
The debate was highly emotional at times...
33 [PHRASE] usu v-link PHR
If you say that something was before your time, you mean that it happened or existed before you were born or before you were able to know about it or remember it.
`You've never seen the Marilyn Monroe film?'--`No, I think it was a bit before my time.'
34 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If someone has reached a particular stage in life before their time, they have reached it at a younger age than is normal.
The small print has forced me, years before my time, to buy spectacles...
35 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say not before time after a statement has been made about something that has been done, you are saying in an emphatic way that you think it should have been done sooner. (BRIT)
The virus is getting more and more attention, and not before time...
36 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you call time on something, you end it. (mainly BRIT JOURNALISM)
Scott Hastings has called time on his international career by cutting short his contract.
37 [PHRASE] V inflects
Someone who is doing time is in prison. (INFORMAL)
He is serving 11 years for robbery, and did time for a similar offence before that.
38 [PHRASE] usu PHR with v, PHR with group
If you say that something will be the case for all time, you mean that it will always be the case.
The desperate condition of the world is that madness has always been here, and that it will remain so for all time.
39 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If something is the case or will happen for the time being, it is the case or will happen now, but only until something else becomes possible or happens.
For the time being, however, immunotherapy is still in its experimental stages...
40 [PHRASE] PHR with v, PHR with cl
If you do something from time to time, you do it occasionally but not regularly.
Her daughters visited him from time to time when he was ill.
41 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something is the case half the time you mean that it often is the case. (INFORMAL)
Half the time, I don't have the slightest idea what he's talking about.
42 [PHRASE] V inflects, PHR n
If you say that you have no time for a person or thing, you mean you do not like them or approve of them, and if you say that you have a lot of time for a person or thing, you mean you like them or approve of them very much.
When I think of what he's done to my mother and me, I've just got no time for him...
43 [PHRASE] V inflects, PHR that, PHR to-inf
If you say that it is high time that something happened or was done, you are saying in an emphatic way that it should happen or be done now, and really should have happened or been done sooner.
It is high time the Government displayed a more humanitarian approach towards victims of the recession...
44 [PHRASE] PHR after v, oft PHR for n, PHR to-inf
If you are in time for a particular event, you are not too late for it.
I arrived just in time for my flight to London...
45 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something will happen in time or given time, you mean that it will happen eventually, when a lot of time has passed.
He would sort out his own problems, in time...
Tina believed that, given time, her business would become profitable.
46 [PHRASE] PHR after v, oft PHR with n
If you are playing, singing, or dancing in time with a piece of music, you are following the rhythm and speed of the music correctly. If you are out of time with it, you are not following the rhythm and speed of the music correctly.
Her body swayed in time with the music...
We were standing onstage playing completely out of time.
47 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something will happen, for example, in a week 's time or in two years ' time, you mean that it will happen a week from now or two years from now.
Presidential elections are due to be held in ten days' time...
48 [PHRASE] PHR after v, oft PHR for n
If you arrive somewhere in good time, you arrive early so that there is time to spare before a particular event.
If we're out, we always make sure we're home in good time for the programme.
49 [PHRASE] PHR after v, PHR as reply
If you tell someone that something will happen in good time or all in good time, you are telling them to be patient because it will happen eventually.
There will be many advanced exercises that you won't be able to do at first. You will get to them in good time...
50 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If something happens in no time or in next to no time, it happens almost immediately or very quickly.
He expects to be out of prison in next to no time.
51 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you do something in your own time, you do it at the speed that you choose, rather than allowing anyone to hurry you.
Now, in your own time, tell me what happened.
52 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you do something such as work in your own time in British English, or on your own time in American English, you do it in your free time rather than, for example, at work or school.
If I choose to work on other projects in my own time, then I say that is my business.
53 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you keep time when playing or singing music, you follow or play the beat, without going too fast or too slowly.
As he sang he kept time on a small drum.
54 [PHRASE] V inflects
When you talk about how well a watch or clock keeps time, you are talking about how accurately it measures time.
Some pulsars keep time better than the earth's most accurate clocks.
55 [PHRASE] V inflects, oft PHR for n, PHR to-inf
If you make time for a particular activity or person, you arrange to have some free time so that you can do the activity or spend time with the person.
Before leaving the city, be sure to make time for a shopping trip...
56 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you say that you made good time on a journey, you mean it did not take you very long compared to the length of time you expected it to take.
They had left early in the morning, on quiet roads, and made good time.
57 [PHRASE] V inflects
If someone is making up for lost time, they are doing something actively and with enthusiasm because they have not had the opportunity to do it before or when they were younger.
Five years older than the majority of officers of his same rank, he was determined to make up for lost time.
58 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you are marking time, you are doing something that is not particularly useful or interesting while you wait for something more important or interesting to happen.
He's really just marking time until he's old enough to leave.
59 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something happens or is the case nine times out of ten or ninety-nine times out of a hundred, you mean that it happens on nearly every occasion or is almost always the case.
When they want something, nine times out of ten they get it...
60 [PHRASE] n PHR, usu PHR after adj-superl
If you say that someone or something is, for example, the best writer of all time, or the most successful film of all time, you mean that they are the best or most successful that there has ever been.
`Monopoly' is one of the best-selling games of all time...
61 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, PHR after v
If you are on time, you are not late.
Don't worry, she'll be on time...
62 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, oft it v-link PHR before cl
If you say that it is only a matter of time or only a question of time before something happens, you mean that it cannot be avoided and will definitely happen at some future date.
It now seems only a matter of time before they resign...
63 [PHRASE] usu of/in/for PHR
When you refer to our time or our times you are referring to the present period in the history of the world.
It would be wrong to say that the Church doesn't enter the great moral debates of our time.
64 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you do something to pass the time you do it because you have some time available and not because you really want to do it.
Without particular interest and just to pass the time, I read a story...
65 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you play for time, you try to make something happen more slowly, because you do not want it to happen or because you need time to think about what to do if it happens.
The president's decision is being seen as an attempt to play for time.
66 [PHRASE] V inflects, oft it PHR to-inf
If you say that something will take time, you mean that it will take a long time.
Change will come, but it will take time...
67 [PHRASE] V inflects, oft PHR -ing
If you take your time doing something, you do it quite slowly and do not hurry.
`Take your time,' Cross told him. `I'm in no hurry.'
68 [PHRASE] V inflects
If a child can tell the time, they are able to find out what the time is by looking at a clock or watch.
My four-year-old daughter cannot quite tell the time.
69 [PHRASE] PHR with cl, PHR after v
If something happens time after time, it happens in a similar way on many occasions.
Burns had escaped from jail time after time...
= repeatedly
70 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you say that time flies, you mean that it seems to pass very quickly.
Time flies when you're having fun.
71 [PHRASE] Ns inflect, PHR after v, v-link PHR
If you have the time of your life, you enjoy yourself very much indeed.
We're taking our little grandchild away with us. We'll make sure he has the time of his life...
72 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, PHR after v
If you say there is no time to lose or no time to be lost, you mean you must hurry as fast as you can to do something.
He rushed home, realising there was no time to lose.
73 [PHRASE] oft PHR whether/if
If you say that time will tell whether something is true or correct, you mean that it will not be known until some time in the future whether it is true or correct.
Only time will tell whether Broughton's optimism is justified...
74 [PHRASE] V inflects, usu PHR in -ing
If you waste no time in doing something, you take the opportunity to do it immediately or quickly.
Tom wasted no time in telling me why he had come.
75
time and again: see again
in the fullness of time: see fullnessac|cess time (access times)
[N-COUNT]
Access time is the time that is needed to get information that is stored in a computer. (COMPUTING)
This system helps speed up access times.air time
also airtime
[N-UNCOUNT]
The airtime that something gets is the amount of time taken up with broadcasts about it.
Even the best women's teams get little air time...big time
also big-time
1 [ADJ] usu ADJ n
You can use big time to refer to the highest level of an activity or sport where you can achieve the greatest amount of success or importance. If you describe a person as big time, you mean they are successful and important. (INFORMAL)
He took a long time to settle in to big-time football.
...a big-time investment banker.
2 [N-SING] the N
If someone hits the big time, they become famous or successful in a particular area of activity. (INFORMAL)
He hit the big time with films such as Ghost and Dirty Dancing.
3 [ADV] ADV after v
You can use big time if you want to emphasize the importance or extent of something that has happened. (AM INFORMAL)
They screwed things up big time...
America lost big-time.break|fast time
also breakfast-time
[N-UNCOUNT] oft prep N
Breakfast time is the period of the morning when most people have their breakfast.
By breakfast-time he was already at his desk.clos|ing time (closing times)
[N-VAR]
Closing time is the time when something such as a shop, library, or pub closes and people have to leave.
We were in the pub until closing time.ex|tra time
[N-UNCOUNT]
If a game of football, hockey, or basketball goes into extra time, the game continues for a set period after it would usually have ended because both teams have the same score. (BRIT; in AM, use overtime)
Cambridge won 2-0 after extra time.in|ju|ry time
[N-UNCOUNT]
Injury time is the period of time added to the end of a football game because play was stopped during the match when players were injured. (mainly BRIT)lead time (lead times)
1 [N-COUNT]
Lead time is the time between the original design or idea for a particular product and its actual production. (BUSINESS)
They aim to cut production lead times to under 18 months.
2 [N-COUNT]
Lead time is the period of time that it takes for goods to be delivered after someone has ordered them. (BUSINESS)
Lead times on new equipment orders can run as long as three years.lo|cal time
[N-UNCOUNT]
Local time is the official time in a particular region or country.
It was around 10.15 pm local time, 3.15 am at home.open|ing time (opening times)
1 [N-UNCOUNT] also the N
You can refer to the time that a shop, bank, library, or bar opens for business as its opening time.
Shoppers began arriving long before the 10am opening time.
2 [N-PLURAL]
The opening times of a place such as a shop, a restaurant, or a museum is the period during which it is open.
Ask the local tourist office about opening times.
= opening hourspeak time
[N-UNCOUNT] oft at/in N, N n
Programmes which are broadcast at peak time are broadcast when the greatest number of people are watching television or listening to the radio. (mainly BRIT; in AM, usually use prime time)
The news programme goes out four times a week at peak time.prime time
also primetime
[N-UNCOUNT] usu N n
Prime time television or radio programmes are broadcast when the greatest number of people are watching television or listening to the radio, usually in the evenings.
...a prime-time television show.
...prime time viewing in mid-evening.qual|ity time
[N-UNCOUNT]
If people spend quality time together, they spend a period of time relaxing or doing things that they both enjoy, and not worrying about work or other responsibilities.real time
[N-UNCOUNT] oft in N
If something is done in real time, there is no noticeable delay between the action and its effect or consequence.
...umpires, who have to make every decision in real time.re|sponse time (response times)
[N-COUNT]
Response time is the time taken for a computer to do something after you have given an instruction. (COMPUTING)
The only flaw is the slightly slow response times when you press the buttons.run time (run times)
[N-COUNT]
Run time is the time during which a computer program is running. (COMPUTING)run|ning time (running times)
[N-COUNT]
The running time of something such as a film, video, or CD is the time it takes to play from start to finish.spare time
[N-UNCOUNT] usu poss N
Your spare time is the time during which you do not have to work and you can do whatever you like.
In her spare time she read books on cooking...stand|ard time
[N-UNCOUNT] usu supp N
Standard time is the official local time of a region or country.
French standard time is GMT plus 1 hr.sum|mer time
also summertime
1 [N-UNCOUNT] also the N
Summer time is the period of time during which the summer lasts.
It's a very beautiful place in the summertime.
2
see also British Summer Timetime and mo|tion
[N-UNCOUNT] usu N n
A time and motion study is a study of the way that people do a particular job, or the way they work in a particular place in order to discover the most efficient methods of working.time bomb (time bombs)
also time-bomb
1 [N-COUNT]
A time bomb is a bomb with a mechanism that causes it to explode at a particular time.
2 [N-COUNT] oft adj N
If you describe something as a time bomb, you mean that it is likely to have a serious effect on a person or situation at a later date, especially if you think it will cause a lot of damage.
This proposal is a political time bomb that could cost the government the next election...time frame (time frames)
[N-COUNT]
The time frame of an event is the length of time during which it happens or develops. (FORMAL)
The time frame within which all this occurred was from September 1985 to March 1986...
= timescaletime lag (time lags)
also time-lag
[N-COUNT] usu sing, oft N between pl-n
A time lag is a fairly long interval of time between one event and another related event that happens after it.
...the time-lag between theoretical research and practical applications.time lim|it (time limits)
[N-COUNT]
A time limit is a date before which a particular task must be completed.
We have extended the time limit for claims until July 30.time out (time outs)
also time-out
1 [N-VAR]
In basketball, American football, ice hockey, and some other sports, when a team calls a time out, they call a stop to the game for a few minutes in order to rest and discuss how they are going to play.
2 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N from n, N to-inf
If you take time out from a job or activity, you have a break from it and do something different instead.
He took time out from campaigning to accompany his mother to dinner.time sig|nal (time signals)
[N-COUNT] usu the N in sing
The time signal is the series of high-pitched sounds that are broadcast at certain times on the radio, for example at exactly one o'clock or exactly six o'clock. (BRIT)time sig|na|ture (time signatures)
[N-COUNT]
The time signature of a piece of music consists of two numbers written at the beginning that show how many beats there are in each bar.time slot (time slots)
[N-COUNT]
A television or radio programme's time slot is the time when it is broadcast.
90 per cent of listeners had stayed with the programme when it changed its time slot.time switch (time switches)
[N-COUNT]
A time switch is a device that causes a machine to start or stop working at specific times.time tri|al (time trials)
[N-COUNT]
In cycling and some other sports, a time trial is a contest in which competitors race along a course individually, in as fast a time as possible, instead of racing directly against each other.time wast|er (time wasters)
also time-waster
[N-COUNT]
If you say that someone or something is a time waster, you mean that they cause you to spend a lot of time doing something that is unnecessary or does not produce any benefit.
Surfing the Internet is fun, but it's also a time waster.time zone (time zones)
also time-zone
[N-COUNT]
A time zone is one of the areas into which the world is divided where the time is calculated as being a particular number of hours behind or ahead of GMT.
1 [N-UNCOUNT]
Time is what we measure in minutes, hours, days, and years.
...a two-week period of time...
Time passed, and still Ma did not appear...
The social significance of religion has changed over time.
2 [N-SING] wh/the N
You use time to ask or talk about a specific point in the day, which can be stated in hours and minutes and is shown on clocks.
`What time is it?'--`Eight o'clock.'...
He asked me the time...
What time did he leave?...
The time is now 19 minutes past the hour.
3 [N-COUNT]
The time when something happens is the point in the day when it happens or is supposed to happen.
Departure times are 08:15 from St Quay, and 18:15 from St Helier.
see also opening time
4 [N-UNCOUNT] supp N
You use time to refer to the system of expressing time and counting hours that is used in a particular part of the world.
The incident happened just after ten o'clock local time.
5 [N-UNCOUNT] also a N
You use time to refer to the period that you spend doing something or when something has been happening.
Adam spent a lot of time in his grandfather's office...
He wouldn't have the time or money to take care of me...
Listen to me, I haven't got much time...
The route was blocked for some time...
For a long time I didn't tell anyone...
A short time later they sat down to eat...
6 [N-SING] a N
If you say that something has been happening for a time, you mean that it has been happening for a fairly long period of time.
He stayed for quite a time...
After a time they came to a pond.
7 [N-COUNT] with supp, oft prep N
You use time to refer to a period of time or a point in time, when you are describing what is happening then. For example, if something happened at a particular time, that is when it happened. If it happens at all times, it always happens.
We were in the same college, which was male-only at that time...
By this time he was thirty...
It was a time of terrible uncertainty...
Homes are more affordable than at any time in the past five years...
It seemed like a good time to tell her...
8 [N-COUNT] with supp, usu adj N, N of n
You use time or times to talk about a particular period in history or in your life.
We'll be alone together, quite like old times...
We are in one of the most severe recessions in modern times...
9 [N-PLURAL] the N
You can use the times to refer to the present time and to modern fashions, tastes, and developments. For example, if you say that someone keeps up with the times, you mean they are fashionable or aware of modern developments. If you say they are behind the times, you mean they are unfashionable or not aware of them.
This approach is now seriously out of step with the times...
Johnny has changed his image to fit the times.
10 [N-COUNT] adj N
When you describe the time that you had on a particular occasion or during a particular part of your life, you are describing the sort of experience that you had then.
Sarah and I had a great time while the kids were away...
She's had a really tough time the last year and a half...
11 [N-SING] poss N
Your time is the amount of time that you have to live, or to do a particular thing.
Now Martin has begun to suffer the effects of AIDS, and he says his time is running out...
12 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N for n, N to-inf, N that
If you say it is time for something, time to do something, or time you did something, you mean that this thing ought to happen or be done now.
Opinion polls indicated a feeling among the public that it was time for a change...
It was time for him to go to work...
This was no time to make a speech...
13 [N-COUNT] with supp
When you talk about a time when something happens, you are referring to a specific occasion when it happens.
Every time she travels on the bus it's delayed by at least three hours...
The last time I saw her was about sixteen years ago...
14 [N-COUNT] usu num/ord N
You use time after numbers to say how often something happens.
It was her job to make tea three times a day...
15 [N-PLURAL] num N compar, num N as adj/adv, num N n
You use times after numbers when comparing one thing to another and saying, for example, how much bigger, smaller, better, or worse it is.
Its profits are rising four times faster than the average company...
...an area five times the size of Britain.
16 [CONJ]
You use times in arithmetic to link numbers or amounts that are multiplied together to reach a total.
Four times six is 24.
17 [N-COUNT] with supp, oft poss N, N of n
Someone's time in a race is the amount of time it takes them to finish the race.
He was over a second faster than his previous best time...
18 [N-UNCOUNT] usu supp N, oft in N
The time of a piece of music is the number of beats that the piece has in each bar.
A reel is in four-four time, and a jig is in six-eight time.
19 [VERB] V n to-inf, V n for n, V n adv, V-ed, also V n
If you time something for a particular time, you plan or decide to do it or cause it to happen at this time.
He timed the election to coincide with new measures to boost the economy...
We had timed our visit for March 7...
He had timed his intervention well...
Operation Amazon is timed to coincide with the start of the dry season.
20 [VERB] V n
If you time an action or activity, you measure how long someone takes to do it or how long it lasts.
He timed each performance with a stop-watch.
21
see also timing
22 [PHRASE] it v-link PHR that, PHR as reply
If you say it is about time that something was done, you are saying in an emphatic way that it should happen or be done now, and really should have happened or been done sooner.
It's about time a few movie makers with original ideas were given a chance...
23 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If you do something ahead of time, you do it before a particular event or before you need to, in order to be well prepared.
Find out ahead of time what regulations apply to your situation.
24 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, oft PHR in -ing
If someone is ahead of their time or before their time, they have new ideas a long time before other people start to think in the same way.
My mother was ahead of her time. She surrounded me with culture and art.
25 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If something happens or is done all the time, it happens or is done continually.
We can't be together all the time...
= continually
26 [PHRASE] amount PHR
You say at a time after an amount to say how many things or how much of something is involved in one action, place, or group.
Beat in the eggs, one at a time...
27 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If something could happen at any time, it is possible that it will happen very soon, though nobody can predict exactly when.
Conditions are still very tense and the fighting could escalate at any time.
28 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
You say at the best of times when you are making a negative or critical comment to emphasize that it is true even when the circumstances are as favourable as possible.
A trade war would be bad at the best of times, but in the current economic climate, it would be a disaster.
29 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something was the case at one time, you mean that it was the case during a particular period in the past.
At one time 400 men, women and children lived in the village.
30 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If two or more things exist, happen, or are true at the same time, they exist, happen, or are true together although they seem to contradict each other.
I was afraid of her, but at the same time I really liked her...
31 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
At the same time is used to introduce a statement that slightly changes or contradicts the previous statement.
I don't think I set out to come up with a different sound for each album. At the same time, I do have a sense of what is right for the moment.
32 [PHRASE] PHR with cl/group
You use at times to say that something happens or is true on some occasions or at some moments.
The debate was highly emotional at times...
33 [PHRASE] usu v-link PHR
If you say that something was before your time, you mean that it happened or existed before you were born or before you were able to know about it or remember it.
`You've never seen the Marilyn Monroe film?'--`No, I think it was a bit before my time.'
34 [PHRASE] PHR after v
If someone has reached a particular stage in life before their time, they have reached it at a younger age than is normal.
The small print has forced me, years before my time, to buy spectacles...
35 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say not before time after a statement has been made about something that has been done, you are saying in an emphatic way that you think it should have been done sooner. (BRIT)
The virus is getting more and more attention, and not before time...
36 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you call time on something, you end it. (mainly BRIT JOURNALISM)
Scott Hastings has called time on his international career by cutting short his contract.
37 [PHRASE] V inflects
Someone who is doing time is in prison. (INFORMAL)
He is serving 11 years for robbery, and did time for a similar offence before that.
38 [PHRASE] usu PHR with v, PHR with group
If you say that something will be the case for all time, you mean that it will always be the case.
The desperate condition of the world is that madness has always been here, and that it will remain so for all time.
39 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If something is the case or will happen for the time being, it is the case or will happen now, but only until something else becomes possible or happens.
For the time being, however, immunotherapy is still in its experimental stages...
40 [PHRASE] PHR with v, PHR with cl
If you do something from time to time, you do it occasionally but not regularly.
Her daughters visited him from time to time when he was ill.
41 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something is the case half the time you mean that it often is the case. (INFORMAL)
Half the time, I don't have the slightest idea what he's talking about.
42 [PHRASE] V inflects, PHR n
If you say that you have no time for a person or thing, you mean you do not like them or approve of them, and if you say that you have a lot of time for a person or thing, you mean you like them or approve of them very much.
When I think of what he's done to my mother and me, I've just got no time for him...
43 [PHRASE] V inflects, PHR that, PHR to-inf
If you say that it is high time that something happened or was done, you are saying in an emphatic way that it should happen or be done now, and really should have happened or been done sooner.
It is high time the Government displayed a more humanitarian approach towards victims of the recession...
44 [PHRASE] PHR after v, oft PHR for n, PHR to-inf
If you are in time for a particular event, you are not too late for it.
I arrived just in time for my flight to London...
45 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something will happen in time or given time, you mean that it will happen eventually, when a lot of time has passed.
He would sort out his own problems, in time...
Tina believed that, given time, her business would become profitable.
46 [PHRASE] PHR after v, oft PHR with n
If you are playing, singing, or dancing in time with a piece of music, you are following the rhythm and speed of the music correctly. If you are out of time with it, you are not following the rhythm and speed of the music correctly.
Her body swayed in time with the music...
We were standing onstage playing completely out of time.
47 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something will happen, for example, in a week 's time or in two years ' time, you mean that it will happen a week from now or two years from now.
Presidential elections are due to be held in ten days' time...
48 [PHRASE] PHR after v, oft PHR for n
If you arrive somewhere in good time, you arrive early so that there is time to spare before a particular event.
If we're out, we always make sure we're home in good time for the programme.
49 [PHRASE] PHR after v, PHR as reply
If you tell someone that something will happen in good time or all in good time, you are telling them to be patient because it will happen eventually.
There will be many advanced exercises that you won't be able to do at first. You will get to them in good time...
50 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If something happens in no time or in next to no time, it happens almost immediately or very quickly.
He expects to be out of prison in next to no time.
51 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you do something in your own time, you do it at the speed that you choose, rather than allowing anyone to hurry you.
Now, in your own time, tell me what happened.
52 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you do something such as work in your own time in British English, or on your own time in American English, you do it in your free time rather than, for example, at work or school.
If I choose to work on other projects in my own time, then I say that is my business.
53 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you keep time when playing or singing music, you follow or play the beat, without going too fast or too slowly.
As he sang he kept time on a small drum.
54 [PHRASE] V inflects
When you talk about how well a watch or clock keeps time, you are talking about how accurately it measures time.
Some pulsars keep time better than the earth's most accurate clocks.
55 [PHRASE] V inflects, oft PHR for n, PHR to-inf
If you make time for a particular activity or person, you arrange to have some free time so that you can do the activity or spend time with the person.
Before leaving the city, be sure to make time for a shopping trip...
56 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you say that you made good time on a journey, you mean it did not take you very long compared to the length of time you expected it to take.
They had left early in the morning, on quiet roads, and made good time.
57 [PHRASE] V inflects
If someone is making up for lost time, they are doing something actively and with enthusiasm because they have not had the opportunity to do it before or when they were younger.
Five years older than the majority of officers of his same rank, he was determined to make up for lost time.
58 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you are marking time, you are doing something that is not particularly useful or interesting while you wait for something more important or interesting to happen.
He's really just marking time until he's old enough to leave.
59 [PHRASE] PHR with cl
If you say that something happens or is the case nine times out of ten or ninety-nine times out of a hundred, you mean that it happens on nearly every occasion or is almost always the case.
When they want something, nine times out of ten they get it...
60 [PHRASE] n PHR, usu PHR after adj-superl
If you say that someone or something is, for example, the best writer of all time, or the most successful film of all time, you mean that they are the best or most successful that there has ever been.
`Monopoly' is one of the best-selling games of all time...
61 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, PHR after v
If you are on time, you are not late.
Don't worry, she'll be on time...
62 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, oft it v-link PHR before cl
If you say that it is only a matter of time or only a question of time before something happens, you mean that it cannot be avoided and will definitely happen at some future date.
It now seems only a matter of time before they resign...
63 [PHRASE] usu of/in/for PHR
When you refer to our time or our times you are referring to the present period in the history of the world.
It would be wrong to say that the Church doesn't enter the great moral debates of our time.
64 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you do something to pass the time you do it because you have some time available and not because you really want to do it.
Without particular interest and just to pass the time, I read a story...
65 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you play for time, you try to make something happen more slowly, because you do not want it to happen or because you need time to think about what to do if it happens.
The president's decision is being seen as an attempt to play for time.
66 [PHRASE] V inflects, oft it PHR to-inf
If you say that something will take time, you mean that it will take a long time.
Change will come, but it will take time...
67 [PHRASE] V inflects, oft PHR -ing
If you take your time doing something, you do it quite slowly and do not hurry.
`Take your time,' Cross told him. `I'm in no hurry.'
68 [PHRASE] V inflects
If a child can tell the time, they are able to find out what the time is by looking at a clock or watch.
My four-year-old daughter cannot quite tell the time.
69 [PHRASE] PHR with cl, PHR after v
If something happens time after time, it happens in a similar way on many occasions.
Burns had escaped from jail time after time...
= repeatedly
70 [PHRASE] V inflects
If you say that time flies, you mean that it seems to pass very quickly.
Time flies when you're having fun.
71 [PHRASE] Ns inflect, PHR after v, v-link PHR
If you have the time of your life, you enjoy yourself very much indeed.
We're taking our little grandchild away with us. We'll make sure he has the time of his life...
72 [PHRASE] v-link PHR, PHR after v
If you say there is no time to lose or no time to be lost, you mean you must hurry as fast as you can to do something.
He rushed home, realising there was no time to lose.
73 [PHRASE] oft PHR whether/if
If you say that time will tell whether something is true or correct, you mean that it will not be known until some time in the future whether it is true or correct.
Only time will tell whether Broughton's optimism is justified...
74 [PHRASE] V inflects, usu PHR in -ing
If you waste no time in doing something, you take the opportunity to do it immediately or quickly.
Tom wasted no time in telling me why he had come.
75
time and again: see again
in the fullness of time: see fullnessac|cess time (access times)
[N-COUNT]
Access time is the time that is needed to get information that is stored in a computer. (COMPUTING)
This system helps speed up access times.air time
also airtime
[N-UNCOUNT]
The airtime that something gets is the amount of time taken up with broadcasts about it.
Even the best women's teams get little air time...big time
also big-time
1 [ADJ] usu ADJ n
You can use big time to refer to the highest level of an activity or sport where you can achieve the greatest amount of success or importance. If you describe a person as big time, you mean they are successful and important. (INFORMAL)
He took a long time to settle in to big-time football.
...a big-time investment banker.
2 [N-SING] the N
If someone hits the big time, they become famous or successful in a particular area of activity. (INFORMAL)
He hit the big time with films such as Ghost and Dirty Dancing.
3 [ADV] ADV after v
You can use big time if you want to emphasize the importance or extent of something that has happened. (AM INFORMAL)
They screwed things up big time...
America lost big-time.break|fast time
also breakfast-time
[N-UNCOUNT] oft prep N
Breakfast time is the period of the morning when most people have their breakfast.
By breakfast-time he was already at his desk.clos|ing time (closing times)
[N-VAR]
Closing time is the time when something such as a shop, library, or pub closes and people have to leave.
We were in the pub until closing time.ex|tra time
[N-UNCOUNT]
If a game of football, hockey, or basketball goes into extra time, the game continues for a set period after it would usually have ended because both teams have the same score. (BRIT; in AM, use overtime)
Cambridge won 2-0 after extra time.in|ju|ry time
[N-UNCOUNT]
Injury time is the period of time added to the end of a football game because play was stopped during the match when players were injured. (mainly BRIT)lead time (lead times)
1 [N-COUNT]
Lead time is the time between the original design or idea for a particular product and its actual production. (BUSINESS)
They aim to cut production lead times to under 18 months.
2 [N-COUNT]
Lead time is the period of time that it takes for goods to be delivered after someone has ordered them. (BUSINESS)
Lead times on new equipment orders can run as long as three years.lo|cal time
[N-UNCOUNT]
Local time is the official time in a particular region or country.
It was around 10.15 pm local time, 3.15 am at home.open|ing time (opening times)
1 [N-UNCOUNT] also the N
You can refer to the time that a shop, bank, library, or bar opens for business as its opening time.
Shoppers began arriving long before the 10am opening time.
2 [N-PLURAL]
The opening times of a place such as a shop, a restaurant, or a museum is the period during which it is open.
Ask the local tourist office about opening times.
= opening hourspeak time
[N-UNCOUNT] oft at/in N, N n
Programmes which are broadcast at peak time are broadcast when the greatest number of people are watching television or listening to the radio. (mainly BRIT; in AM, usually use prime time)
The news programme goes out four times a week at peak time.prime time
also primetime
[N-UNCOUNT] usu N n
Prime time television or radio programmes are broadcast when the greatest number of people are watching television or listening to the radio, usually in the evenings.
...a prime-time television show.
...prime time viewing in mid-evening.qual|ity time
[N-UNCOUNT]
If people spend quality time together, they spend a period of time relaxing or doing things that they both enjoy, and not worrying about work or other responsibilities.real time
[N-UNCOUNT] oft in N
If something is done in real time, there is no noticeable delay between the action and its effect or consequence.
...umpires, who have to make every decision in real time.re|sponse time (response times)
[N-COUNT]
Response time is the time taken for a computer to do something after you have given an instruction. (COMPUTING)
The only flaw is the slightly slow response times when you press the buttons.run time (run times)
[N-COUNT]
Run time is the time during which a computer program is running. (COMPUTING)run|ning time (running times)
[N-COUNT]
The running time of something such as a film, video, or CD is the time it takes to play from start to finish.spare time
[N-UNCOUNT] usu poss N
Your spare time is the time during which you do not have to work and you can do whatever you like.
In her spare time she read books on cooking...stand|ard time
[N-UNCOUNT] usu supp N
Standard time is the official local time of a region or country.
French standard time is GMT plus 1 hr.sum|mer time
also summertime
1 [N-UNCOUNT] also the N
Summer time is the period of time during which the summer lasts.
It's a very beautiful place in the summertime.
2
see also British Summer Timetime and mo|tion
[N-UNCOUNT] usu N n
A time and motion study is a study of the way that people do a particular job, or the way they work in a particular place in order to discover the most efficient methods of working.time bomb (time bombs)
also time-bomb
1 [N-COUNT]
A time bomb is a bomb with a mechanism that causes it to explode at a particular time.
2 [N-COUNT] oft adj N
If you describe something as a time bomb, you mean that it is likely to have a serious effect on a person or situation at a later date, especially if you think it will cause a lot of damage.
This proposal is a political time bomb that could cost the government the next election...time frame (time frames)
[N-COUNT]
The time frame of an event is the length of time during which it happens or develops. (FORMAL)
The time frame within which all this occurred was from September 1985 to March 1986...
= timescaletime lag (time lags)
also time-lag
[N-COUNT] usu sing, oft N between pl-n
A time lag is a fairly long interval of time between one event and another related event that happens after it.
...the time-lag between theoretical research and practical applications.time lim|it (time limits)
[N-COUNT]
A time limit is a date before which a particular task must be completed.
We have extended the time limit for claims until July 30.time out (time outs)
also time-out
1 [N-VAR]
In basketball, American football, ice hockey, and some other sports, when a team calls a time out, they call a stop to the game for a few minutes in order to rest and discuss how they are going to play.
2 [N-UNCOUNT] oft N from n, N to-inf
If you take time out from a job or activity, you have a break from it and do something different instead.
He took time out from campaigning to accompany his mother to dinner.time sig|nal (time signals)
[N-COUNT] usu the N in sing
The time signal is the series of high-pitched sounds that are broadcast at certain times on the radio, for example at exactly one o'clock or exactly six o'clock. (BRIT)time sig|na|ture (time signatures)
[N-COUNT]
The time signature of a piece of music consists of two numbers written at the beginning that show how many beats there are in each bar.time slot (time slots)
[N-COUNT]
A television or radio programme's time slot is the time when it is broadcast.
90 per cent of listeners had stayed with the programme when it changed its time slot.time switch (time switches)
[N-COUNT]
A time switch is a device that causes a machine to start or stop working at specific times.time tri|al (time trials)
[N-COUNT]
In cycling and some other sports, a time trial is a contest in which competitors race along a course individually, in as fast a time as possible, instead of racing directly against each other.time wast|er (time wasters)
also time-waster
[N-COUNT]
If you say that someone or something is a time waster, you mean that they cause you to spend a lot of time doing something that is unnecessary or does not produce any benefit.
Surfing the Internet is fun, but it's also a time waster.time zone (time zones)
also time-zone
[N-COUNT]
A time zone is one of the areas into which the world is divided where the time is calculated as being a particular number of hours behind or ahead of GMT.