true time

American  

noun

1. apparent solar time; the time as shown by a sundial.

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true time British  

noun

1. the time shown by a sundial; solar time. When the sun is at the highest point in its daily path, the true time is exactly noon Compare mean time

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Example Sentences

The only day the clock tells the true time is during the countdown to the midnight bells during Edinburgh's big Hogmanay celebrations on 31 December.

From BBC • Oct. 26, 2024

“The problem is nobody knows” the true time frame for the projects, says Hitoshi Murayama, a theorist at the University of California, Berkeley, who chairs P5.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 21, 2023

And Sideræl — pronounced “sigh-deer-ee-el” — is “a more elven” spelling of sidereal, “the true time of the universe, star time, deep space time, not our relative earth time,” she explained.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 27, 2023

"Many investors and institutions believe that the true time of the China senior housing market will boom around 2025-2028, so they are accelerating investments in this space," Liu said.

From Reuters • Mar. 3, 2023

Johnny White recorded the true time in his journal that night: 19:25.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown