stopwatch

[stop-woch]

noun

1. a watch with a hand or hands that can be stopped or started at any instant, used for precise timing, as in races.

stopwatch

/ ˈstɒpˌwɒtʃ /

noun

1. a type of watch used for timing events, such as sporting events, accurately, having a device for stopping the hand or hands instantly

Word History and Origins

Origin of stopwatch¹

First recorded in 1730–40; stop + watch

Example Sentences

The stopwatch featured in the introduction to “60 Minutes” is strapped to a bomb when it appears on “South Park.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

First it was a pencil, paper and a stopwatch.

Read more on BBC

If you could tear your eyes away from the screen enough to check a stopwatch, not one minute goes by without a flourish that’s either funny, ridiculous, stunning or emotional.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

As the season unfolded, Ohtani took particular interest in trying to identify such cues himself, sometimes reviewing video in the dugout with a stopwatch in hand.

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A stopwatch then suddenly popped up within the box, counting the time until a button was pressed.

Read more on New York Times

Related Words

• timepiece 
• wristwatch