- a variation of around-the-clock.
round-the-clock
Americanadjective
adjective
Explanation
Use the adjective round-the-clock to mean always, at any time of day. A security company that uses round-the-clock surveillance is keeping an eye on things 24 hours a day. Round-the-clock flights to New York leave all day and all night long, and a diner that offers round-the-clock breakfast will serve you pancakes whether it's six in the morning or midnight. If a patient needs round-the-clock care in the hospital, they'll have nurses checking on them nonstop, day and night. Round-the-clock dates from the 1940s and was first used to describe air raids during World War II.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Officers also dismantled the protesters' stage and makeshift tents at Jantar Mantar, but demonstrators have refused to leave, maintaining a round-the-clock sit-in under heavy police and paramilitary deployment.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Kuwaiti authorities have called on the public to consume less energy so that they can maintain round-the-clock electricity as the grid comes under Iranian attack.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
They know their cognition will continue to fade, and they might live for years in an agitated, delusional state where they’ll need round-the-clock care from people they don’t recognize.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
South Korea took another step toward liberalizing its financial markets as it introduced round-the-clock trading of its currency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
The first thing he does is instruct Soldier Jackson, his second in command, to set up a two-person, round-the-clock guard on Peeta.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
