like clockwork

Idioms  

1. Also, regular as clockwork. With extreme regularity, as in Ruth arrives every Wednesday morning just like clockwork, or You can count on his schedule, which is regular as clockwork, or Their assembly line runs like clockwork. This idiom alludes to the mechanical and therefore very regular action of a clock. [Second half of 1600s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

like clockwork

Unofficially, it kicks off every Sunday afternoon when, like clockwork, anxious thoughts begin seeping into her brain.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026

Your attorney should coordinate your will, beneficiary designations, charitable gifts and executor stipulations so they all work like clockwork.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026

The busy operation has to run like clockwork, as about 200 lorries will arrive to collect products every day.

From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026

I’m not sure what would provoke anyone to tune in, but like clockwork, the viewership billowed to the thousands.

From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2026

Nor had she reported receiving the packets of poultice that Miss Mortimer sent Penelope every few months, like clockwork.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

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