o'clock

[uh-klok]

adverb

1. of, by, or according to the clock (used in specifying the hour of the day).

   It is now 4 o'clock.

2. according to a method for indicating relative position whereby a plane in space is considered to be numbered as a clock's face, with 12 o'clock considered as directly ahead in horizontal position or straight up in vertical position.

o'clock

/ əˈklɒk /

adverb

1. used after a number from one to twelve to indicate the hour of the day or night

2. used after a number to indicate direction or position relative to the observer, twelve o'clock being directly ahead or overhead and other positions being obtained by comparisons with a clock face

Word History and Origins

Origin of o'clock¹

First recorded in 1710–20; from o', a reduced form of of; o' + clock ¹ ( def. )

Word History and Origins

Origin of o'clock¹

C18: abbreviation for of the clock

Example Sentences

"Because he said he would arrive at four o'clock in the afternoon. He arrived at seven o'clock, kept me standing there, practising curtsy and curtsy," she said.

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"By then it was probably three o'clock in the afternoon here, I called the Nobel Committee. Of course they were in bed, because it was probably one o'clock in the morning there," Dr Ramsell said.

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If the sun comes out - it's a two o'clock race, it was a four o'clock qualifying today - that makes quite a bit of difference.

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It's nine o'clock on a bitterly cold Monday evening and as temperatures dip below freezing, we are heading out with the Op Boss and Night Light police teams.

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"When you send your child out to school, you send them out with trust that they will come home to you at three o'clock, but they may not," she said.

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