pass the time
Idioms-
Occupy oneself for an interval, as in The plane was six hours late but I passed the time reading a book .
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pass the time of day . Exchange greetings, engage in pleasantries, chat, as in Whenever I met her we would stop to pass the time of day . [First half of 1800s]
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.
Dish, who now works as a financial planner, says she would buy "pretty much anything that was trending" but her biggest vice was scrolling on shopping apps to pass the time.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Jury-rigging their electricity and doting on a dog named Jasper, they pass the time playing poker with stacks of now-useless greenbacks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
To pass the time, he sat near the baggage area used by Trans World and Delta airlines, his back to the lockers about 40 feet away.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
You’ve heard of doomscrolling on your phone to pass the time — but what about “doomjobbing” while looking for work?
From MarketWatch ● May 15, 2026
Sleep would help pass the time, if she dared.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
