time machine

American

noun

a theoretical apparatus that would convey one to the past or future.

time machine British

noun

(in science fiction) a machine in which people or objects can be transported into the past or the future

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

time machines

plural

Etymology

Origin of time machine

First recorded in 1890–95

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:

time machine

For reference, the Delorean time machine in Back to the Future needed 1.21 gigawatts — a figure so comically large it could only be harnessed from plutonium or a bolt of lighting.

From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2026

One installation, triggered by flushing the toilet inside the Tardis, emits the sound of the fictional time machine taking off.

From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026

But his creation left an indelible mark on American culture—thanks to its iconic role as the time machine in “Back to the Future.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 8, 2026

Imagine what it would be like to step in a time machine and jump 50 years into the future.

From Barron's ● Mar. 31, 2026

One might hope therefore that as we advance in science and technology, we would eventually manage to build a time machine.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023