pastime
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pastime
1480–90; earlier pas ( s ) e tyme, translation of Middle French passe-temps
Explanation
A pastime is any hobby or activity that you do to pass the time. Usually, people enjoy their pastimes. When baseball was more popular, it was called the "national pastime," because so many people enjoyed watching or playing it. Baseball is still a major pastime, as are many other sports. Other pastimes include listening to music, playing music, watching TV, playing video games, playing with your dog, and any kind of hobby. Whenever you're awake and not working, you're probably enjoying a pastime.
Vocabulary lists containing pastime
Baseball: A Lexicon
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Words for the World Series
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
This Week in Words: November 11 - 17, 2017
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
It also makes O’Donnell a competent foil—and a satisfying target for Trump’s favorite pastime, revenge.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026
A recent study by the Economist showed that 10% of Americans now rank soccer as their favorite sport, making it the third most popular behind football and basketball and narrowly edging out America’s pastime, baseball.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 9, 2026
In the El Nuevo Día story, which published in March, Díaz is quoted talking about cockfighting, saying it was a pastime he’d followed since he was a child.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026
Golf has long carried a reputation as a pastime reserved for the privileged - with the average age of a golfer in many traditional club settings in the 50s.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2026
It didn't help that we'd infiltrated their space and that my sister's favorite pastime was sending me off to bite them.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
L.A. is also where she filmed her latest movie, “The Dink,” an Apple TV comedy centered on one of her favorite pastimes: pickleball.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
While we have counseled that speculating on earnings reports is gambling, it remains one of the most prevalent pastimes in the stock and options market.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
We still live in San Francisco in the house we bought in 1989, shopping mostly at the same stores and engaging in many of the same pastimes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
The Home Office says existing legislation provides the correct balance between protecting the public from the relatively small number of individuals who misuse catapults, while also allowing the public to enjoy legitimate pastimes.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2025
Listening to people howl in misery is not among my favorite pastimes.
From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green
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.
