round-the-clock

American  

[round-thuh-klok] / ˈraʊnd ðəˈklɒk /

adjective

1. a variant of around-the-clock.

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round-the-clock British  

adjective

1. (or as adverb round the clock) throughout the day and night

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Explanation

Use the adjective round-the-clock to mean always, at any time of day. A security company that uses round-the-clock surveillance is keeping an eye on things 24 hours a day. Round-the-clock flights to New York leave all day and all night long, and a diner that offers round-the-clock breakfast will serve you pancakes whether it's six in the morning or midnight. If a patient needs round-the-clock care in the hospital, they'll have nurses checking on them nonstop, day and night. Round-the-clock dates from the 1940s and was first used to describe air raids during World War II.

Example Sentences

Starting in the 1980s, CNN redefined how breaking news is covered on television, with round-the-clock updates and live reports during major events like the first Iraq war in 1990, the O.J.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026

The “CNN effect” refers to the impact that round-the-clock news coverage has on policymakers to react to what’s happening.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

He still needs round-the-clock care and lives in a home in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, for people with acquired brain injuries.

From BBC • Mar. 22, 2026

It would take more than two years of round-the-clock campaigning just to give each and every one a quick handshake.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2026

Geeks keep their computers on round-the-clock and often work irregular hours, in part because Web-surfing, software trading, and collecting and ICQ and Hotline messaging are factored in.

From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz

Related Words

• around-the-clock
• constant
• continuous
• endless
• incessant
• interminable
• nonstop
• ongoing
• perpetual
• relentless
• unbroken
• unending
• uninterrupted