lose time

Idioms  

1. Operate too slowly. For example, My watch loses time , or This clock loses five minutes a day . This usage is always applied to a timepiece. [Mid-1800s]

2. Waste time, delay, as in We wanted to paint the entire porch today, but we lost time trying to find a color that matched the house . This expression is sometimes put negatively as lose no time , meaning “act immediately” or “not delay,” as in We must lose no time in getting him to the hospital . [Late 1500s] Also see make up for lost time .

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Example Sentences

I hate to lose time, but I must veer from the course I had planned.

From Literature

“I’m just afraid that we will lose time while the new team comes to understand what is happening.”

From The Wall Street Journal

It’s one of those places where you just lose time.

From Salon

For McLaren, there will be questions about strategy, after they pitted Piastri early in the race when he was second behind Verstappen, albeit beginning to lose time.

From BBC

“We can yell if we need help. We gotta see which tunnel is the best one to go in, and we’d lose time checking each one out together. We’ve gotta split up.”

From Literature