Jump To:

• full time
  full time

  noun

  the number of hours in a period, as a day, week, or month, considered customary for pursuing an activity, especially working at a job: FT, F/T
• full-time
  full-time

  adjective

  working or operating the customary or requisite number of hours in each day, week, or month.

full time

¹ American  

[fool tahym] / ˈfʊl ˈtaɪm /

noun

1. the number of hours in a period, as a day, week, or month, considered customary for pursuing an activity, especially working at a job: FT, F/T

   The factory now operates on full time.

---

full-time ² American  

[fool-tahym] / ˈfʊlˈtaɪm /

adjective

1. working or operating the customary or requisite number of hours in each day, week, or month.

   a full-time housekeeper;

   full-time production.

2. being indefinitely employed by one company for the customary or requisite number of hours.

   Only full-time employees are eligible for healthcare.

---

adverb

1. on a full-time basis; on a schedule corresponding to the customary number of working or operational hours.

full-time ¹ British  

adjective

1. for the entire time appropriate to an activity

   a full-time job

   a full-time student

---

adverb

1. on a full-time basis

   he works full time

full time ² British  

noun

1. the end of a football or other match Compare half-time

---

Other Word Forms

• full-timer
  noun

Etymology

Origin of full time¹

First recorded in 1910–15

Origin of full-time²

First recorded in 1895–1900

Explanation

If you do something full-time, you spend most of your available time doing it. Working full-time usually means spending around forty hours a week doing your work. You can be employed at a full-time job, or you can be a full-time student. Some people are full-time parents, and you might hope to be a full-time artist or a full-time musician one day. In all of these examples, people use the majority of their waking hours (at least during the work week) focusing on one thing. This term dates from the late 1800s.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

full time full-time

The back story: When Covid sent Yale students home in 2020, Chime and his co-founders decided to skip remote learning and build their company full time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

In total, they spent a year and half working full time on “Jared Leto: Hollywood’s Dark Secret.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

Former “CBS Evening News” and morning show anchor Norah O’Donnell will also join “60 Minutes” full time as a correspondent, expanding her role with the show.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Keep working full time as long as possible.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026

I’d gone on full time at the Charcoaler.

From "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" by Benjamin Alire Saenz

When Albano, a full-time content creator, posts her school supply hauls on social media, a deluge of messages come in from moms desperately asking Albano to donate items to their kids.

From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026

Tim Gaspar, 44, founded an eponymous insurance agency in the Valley, which he sold in 2021, and is now campaigning full-time to win the Third District council seat, according to campaign spokesperson Haley Townes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2026

Your son has, perhaps, been given a rougher deal: Even though he is a full-time student with little or no income, he still pays about $500 for health insurance.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026

Neff is still working in technology sales, but Davis quit his strategy-consulting job to pursue Tastebuds full-time.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

I’m getting good grades, working his stupid full-time job, and saving for college.

From "Please Ignore Vera Dietz" by A.S. King