U.S. Army. the fastest rate of marching troops, a slow jog in which 180 paces, each of 3 feet (0.9 meters), are taken in a minute.
a slow run by troops in step.
a rate of overtime pay that is twice the regular wage rate.
a doubled wage rate, paid for working on public holidays, etc
music
a time twice as fast as an earlier section
two beats per bar
a slow running pace, keeping in step
army a fast march of 180 paces to the minute
First recorded in 1850–55
First recorded in 1850–55
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They can include time-and-a-half or double time, testing in a separate room to reduce distractions or having unlimited breaks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
“If I need to make something from scratch, I need to work double time before I finish the product,” she explains.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2024
"So all of you people feel underused now, get a good night's sleep, because next year you're going to be working double time," he said.
From Reuters ● Nov. 15, 2023
“He was on track to graduate early, and now he is falling behind and will have to work double time just so he can still graduate.”
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 18, 2023
His trick was to sit with the horn in his lap for the first half of a piece, then start at the beginning and, tooting double time, hit the last note right with the others.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
The rushing double-time builds and releases of trance are heard on “Love Sensation.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
At that moment, the song explodes into a baroque rock opera, all power chords and chunky harmonies, before jumping into a double-time groove that recalls Laura Branigan's 1980s hit Gloria.
From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2025
The big moment came as the song reached its fever pitch with drummer Ringo Starr going into a mind-boggling double-time.
From Salon ● Nov. 25, 2024
“Try singing double-time and make sure your mouth is reading perfectly. In the second episode, we go backward and forward in time, and I had to sing backwards.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 30, 2023
He set off in double-time for the cafeteria.
From "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart
They double-timed it back to grab them, but officials hit them with a delay of game penalty — officially deemed an administrative technical foul — because the start had to be postponed a few minutes.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 4, 2023
To this end, he double-timed through ten states last week, from Oregon to Indiana to Arizona, for a total of 15 in his first fortnight of candidacy.
From Time Magazine Archive
In the autumn of 1942, Guy Sajer, 16, the French-speaking son of a German mother, cockily double-timed into Russia to help recharge the Third Reich's blitzkrieg on the steppes.
From Time Magazine Archive
He double-timed all the way back into town and invested all his savings in a wool cap with earflaps and a pair of bicycle goggles.
From Time Magazine Archive
We did an about-face at 12th Street and double-timed back to the folks.
From History of Ambulance Company Number 139 by Various
If only Rose and Frankie would dump the double-timing bastard and go off with each other or run for office or take up painting restoration.
From New York Times ● Jan. 30, 2011
By 10:30 p.m., when the special session ends, the double-timing Brown instructors who teach it are usually a pale shade of grey.
From Time Magazine Archive
Kennedy's competitive instincts were aroused by an old T.R. order requiring that all Marine Corps company officers be able to march 50 miles in 20 hours, double-timing the last 700 yds.
From Time Magazine Archive
The most steadfast vigilance on the part of administrators has been unable to prevent successful cases of malingering, double-timing and false pretenses of need.
From Time Magazine Archive
By the way, I'm convinced that Murray is double-timing me.
From The Martian Cabal by Starzl, Roman Frederick
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.
