mark time

Idioms  

1. Wait idly for something to occur, as in We were just marking time until we received our instructions. This idiom alludes to the literal meaning of marching in place to the time, or beat, of music. [Early 1800s]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mark time

Coppola asked Journe if a human hand had ever been used to mark time.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2025

Rcd1 Rea8, doubling rooks on a closed file, is a bit of a tell that he can only mark time as White dictates the play.

From Washington Times ● Nov. 28, 2023

The town even plays a centuries-old bugle call three times a day from its clock tower to mark time passing by.

From New York Times ● Mar. 23, 2022

Kritsky believes it could be because cicadas use fluid in trees to mark time.

From Salon ● May 11, 2021

But the very fact of my having become his carer served as a reminder that we weren’t there to mark time.

From "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro