clock
[verb]
Synonyms: time
[verb]
Synonyms: set, brood, cover, sit

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. clock¹ S2 W3 /klɒk $ klɑːk/ noun [countable]
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: Middle Dutch; Origin: clocke 'bell, clock', from Medieval Latin clocca 'bell', from a Celtic language]

1. an instrument that shows what time it is, in a room or outside on a building:
I heard the clock strike six (=make six loud sounds).
The station clock was ten minutes slow (=showed a time ten minutes earlier than the real time).
by the hall/kitchen/church etc clock (=according to a particular clock)
What time is it by the kitchen clock? ⇒ watch the clock at watch¹(8)

2. around the clock (also round the clock British English) all day and all night without stopping:
Kim has been working round the clock to finish it in time.

3. put/turn the clock back
a) (also set the clock back American English) to go back to the way things were done in the past instead of doing things in a modern way – used in order to show disapproval:
The new employment bill will put the clock back 50 years.
b) to return to a good situation that you experienced in the past or to make someone remember such a situation:
The kids are all grown up now and you can’t put the clock back.

4. put the clock(s) back/forward British English to change the time shown on the clock to one hour earlier or later, when the time officially changes

5. the clocks go back/forward British English the time changes officially to one hour earlier or later:
The clocks go back in October.

6. against the clock
a) if you work against the clock, you work as quickly as you can because you do not have much time:
Everyone is racing against the clock to get things ready in time.
b) if you run, swim etc against the clock, you run or swim a particular distance while your speed is measured

7. twenty-four hour clock a system for measuring time in which the hours of the day and night have numbers from 0 to 23

8. start/stop the clock to start or stop measuring how much time is left in a game or sport that has a time limit

9. the clock is ticking used to say that there is not much time left to do something:
The clock is ticking for those who have not yet filled in their tax form.

10. the clock
a) an instrument in a vehicle that measures how far it has travelled
on the clock
a car with 43,000 miles on the clock
b) an instrument in a vehicle that measures the speed at which it is travelling

11. run out the clock/kill the clock American English if a team runs out the clock at the end of a game, it tries to keep the ball for the rest of the game so that its opponents cannot get any points
⇒ biological clock, body clock, dandelion clock, time clock

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. clock² verb [transitive]

1. to cover a distance in a particular time, or to reach a particular speed in a race:
Karen won in the 300 metres, clocking 42.9 seconds.
the first steam engine to clock 100 miles an hour

2. to measure or record the time or speed that someone or something is travelling at
clock somebody at/doing something
The police clocked him doing between 100 and 110 miles per hour.

3. British English informal to notice someone or something, or to look at them carefully:
Did you clock the bloke by the door?

4. British English to reduce the number of miles or kilometres shown on the instrument in a car that says how far it has gone, in order to sell the car for more money:
He knew the car had been clocked, but he couldn’t prove it.
clock in/on phrasal verb especially British English
to record on a special card the time you arrive at or begin work Synonym : punch in American English:
I clock on at 8:30.
clock off phrasal verb British English

1. informal to leave work at the end of the day:
What time do you clock off?

2. to record on a special card the time you stop or leave work:
By 6 p.m. most workers have clocked off.
clock out phrasal verb especially British English
to record on a special card the time you stop or leave work Synonym : punch out American English
clock up something phrasal verb
to reach or achieve a particular number or amount:
The Dodgers have clocked up six wins in a row.
I clocked up 90,000 miles in my Ford.
Councillor Scott has clocked up more than 25 years on the borough council.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

clock
noun
ADJ. 12/24-hour | atomic, digital, electric | bedside, kitchen | alarm, carriage, cuckoo, grandfather, long-case, time, travelling, wall
VERB + CLOCK set, wind I've set my alarm clock for six tomorrow.
put back/forward He forgot to put his clock forward and turned up an hour late.
stop (for example in a game) Pressing the ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ response button stops the clock.
glance at, look at | watch employees who are always watching the clock (= wanting their day's work to end)
CLOCK + VERB chime (sth), strike sth, tick The clock struck the hour. I could hear a clock ticking somewhere in the house.
stop | be fast/slow, gain/keep/lose time This clock doesn't keep time.
go back/forward The clocks go back (= for a return to standard time)/forward (= for summer time) tonight.
say sth The clock on the mantelpiece said twelve o'clock.
go off My alarm clock didn't go off this morning.
CLOCK + NOUN face, tower | radio
PREP. against the ~ to work against the clock (= to work fast in order to finish before a particular time) | around/round the ~ (= all day and all night) to work around the clock
by the ~ It's ten o'clock by the kitchen clock.
PHRASES the dial/face/hands of a clock

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

clock

look/glance at the clock
She looked at the clock. It was eight thirty.
the clock says eight/nine etc (=shows a particular time)
The clock said five so I went back to sleep.
a clock strikes eight/nine etc (=makes eight/nine etc sounds according to the hour)
In the distance I heard a church clock strike eleven.
a clock ticks (=makes regular quiet sounds that shows it is working)
There was no sound in the room apart from a clock ticking.
a clock is fast/slow (=shows a later or earlier time than the real time)
There’s no need to hurry – that clock’s fast.
a clock stops (=stops working)
My clock had stopped at 6 am so the alarm didn’t work.
an alarm clock goes off (=rings at a particular time)
What time do you want the alarm clock to go off tomorrow?
set a clock (=make it say the right time)
Don't forget to set your clocks to summer time.
wind (up) a clock (=turn a key to keep it working)
It was one of those old clocks that you have to wind up.
the hands of/on a clock (=the long thin pieces that point at the numbers)
The hands on the clock said ten past two.
the face of a clock/the clock face (=the front part that you look at)
I couldn’t see the clock face from where I was sitting.
the kitchen/sitting-room etc clock
Harry glanced at the kitchen clock and saw that he was late.
an alarm clock (=that makes a noise to wake you up)
He forgot to set his alarm clock.
a wall clock (=that hangs on a wall)
A loud ticking came from the wall clock.
a grandfather clock (=an old-style tall clock that stands on the floor)
Where did you get that beautiful grandfather clock?
a digital clock (=that shows the time as numbers that keep changing)
A digital clock at the finish line shows runners their times.
a travel/travelling clock (=a small one for taking on journeys)
a cuckoo clock (=a clock with a wooden bird inside that comes out every hour and makes a sound)
a church clock (=one on the outside of a church tower)
a carriage clock British English (=a clock inside a glass case with a handle on top)

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

clock
noun
See O'CLOCK (o'clock)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

clock
̈ɪklɔk
See: against time or against the clock , around the clock or the clock around , put back the clock or turn back the clock , go like clockwork or go off like clockwork , turn the clock back

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲