military time
Americannoun
-
Military. time as reckoned over 24 hours, in which hours in the day are numbered from 0 to 24: in speech, often followed by hundred when the time is on the hour, and preceded by zero when the hour is a single digit.
We leave at five in the morning or, in military time, zero five hundred.
The message came through at 17:30 military time.
Etymology
Origin of military time
First recorded in 1945–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The block-by-block fighting … is costing the Russian military time, initiative and combat-power,” according to the IWS study.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 20, 2022
The Navy in early February appealed that order, and at the time Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks said the appeal would give the military time “to make evidence-based and transparent decisions.”
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 7, 2022
The two red paper fliers appeared on Nov. 13, 2021, and even included, in military time, when they were posted on the building, 13:08 hours.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2022
“Schedule is good for 1600 run tomorrow,” he wrote back, using the military time for 4 p.m.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 25, 2016
“No, at twenty-two hundred hours. That’s military time for ten o’clock p.m.”
From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds
![]()
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.