airtime

or air time

[ air-tahym ]

/ ˈɛərˌtaɪm /

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noun

the particular time that a program is broadcast or scheduled for broadcast: The airtime for the newscast is 10 p.m.

the time during which a broadcast takes place: The airtime for the new show is from 10 to 10:30 p.m.

a block of such time sold by a radio or television station to an advertiser, allotted to a political candidate, etc.: The company bought three minutes of airtime.

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Origin of airtime

First recorded in 1940–45; air¹ + time

Words nearby airtime

air system, airt, air taxi, air terminal, airtight, airtime, air-to-air, air-to-surface, air traffic, air-traffic control, air-transportable

How to use airtime in a sentence

However, outside groups pay full freight for TV airtime, whereas TV stations are required to charge candidates their lowest rates.
The Case For Republicans In Georgia vs. The Case For Democrats|Nathaniel Rakich (nathaniel.rakich@fivethirtyeight.com)|January 4, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
The network doesn’t give airtime to QAnon paranoiacs, at least that I’ve seen.
My two days watching Newsmax, the network waging war on Fox News from the right|Emily VanDerWerff|November 12, 2020|Vox
It all moves incredibly fast, and often those proposals quickly dissolve in the months between filming and airtime.
‘The Bachelorette’ implodes as the star leaves the show: A guide to a chaotic episode|Emily Yahr, Lisa Bonos|November 6, 2020|Washington Post
They don’t have airtime to make a call, getting a docket filled out sometimes takes a bribe, and you have to transport them everywhere.
Crime, Corona, Copper and Trouble in Zambia|Eugene Robinson|October 30, 2020|Ozy

Users have the option of making a once-off payment in full or in installments, using their airtime.
Cameroon’s plan to make users pay import duties on mobile devices has sparked outrage|Amindeh Blaise Atabong|October 17, 2020|Quartz
The outlets giving these pronouncements the most airtime are Arabic news stations in the Gulf.
The Dangerous Drug-Funded Secret War Between Iran and Pakistan|Umar Farooq|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A production assistant knocks on the door to tell her she has a minute before airtime.
‘Clinton Inc.’ Author Dishes on Monica Lewinsky and the Blue Dress|Lloyd Grove|July 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Women need to know that their peers are pushing for them and cheering them on—recommending each other and demanding airtime.
Do Women Need to Lean In to Be Experts on Network TV?|Tara D. Sonenshine|May 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Correction: A previous version of this article cited an incorrect figure for amount of lost airtime.
Bringing Mobile Technology to the World’s Women|Nina Strochlic|September 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
People like me have spent a lot of airtime and ink these past couple of weeks arguing over whether this can work.
Why Whites Will Abandon the GOP|Michael Tomasky|July 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for airtime

airtime

/ (ˈɛəˌtaɪm) /

noun

the time allocated to a particular programme, item, topic, or type of material on radio or television

the time of the start of a radio or television broadcast

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012