about time

Idioms  

1. Long past the right time; also, approximately the right time. Thus, It's about time you went to bed can mean either that you should have gone to bed much earlier (often stated with emphasis on the word time), or that now is the appropriate time for you to retire. [Early 1900s] For a synonym, see high time.

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Example Sentences

It was a rolling series of associations, first about time and then about travel, time and movement, and how that fit into being a performance artist.

From Los Angeles Times • May 5, 2026

It’s also a story about time, about seizing the moment: the great days that will define one’s life.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

Stella McGinn says that "it is about time" that there was some progress in improving bus safety laws, but she added that change needed to happen "urgently" before more families experienced "unimaginable pain".

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

"After talking and talking for a whole generation, it's about time for doing," he said.

From Barron's • Mar. 16, 2026

We are not good about time, we mice.

From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck