22 Idioms about time (with examples)

  By Amanda N | | Vocabulary
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The English language is full of idioms – phrases we use to mean something other than
their literal meaning. Today I’m bringing you some phrases and idioms about time and
the passing of time. You may not be surprised to find that many of them talk about
how quickly time passes – isn’t that always the case?

I have already written about idioms for the past, present and future, but these ‘time
idioms’ are ones which didn’t fit into any of those categories.

Idioms to talk about time

 If we say something is a question/matter of time, it means it is inevitable. It is
sure to happen at some point in the future:
“It’s only a matter of time before someone trips over that broken paving stone.”

I’m having a great time!

 If you’re having a whale of a time, you are really enjoying yourself and having an
exceptionally fun experience:
“The kids had a whale of a time at Ben’s birthday party.”
 The idiom about time is used to say that it’s the right time for something to
happen, or that it should have happened long ago. When spoken, there is usually more
emphasis on the phrase when the latter meaning is intended. When written, it’s down
to you to determine the meaning from the context:
“It’s about time I started getting dinner ready.”
“It’s about time women’s sports were taken more seriously.”
 Doing something against the clock means you have less time than you really
need to complete the task. You may also hear in a race against time used in the
same way:
“I feel like I’m constantly working against the clock in this job.”
 On the other hand, if you do something ahead of time it means it is complete
before the deadline or with plenty of time to spare:
“Aim to complete your tasks ahead of time to allow for complications.”
 When something happens at the eleventh hour, it happens at the last possible
moment – almost too late:
“I handed my report in at the eleventh hour.”
 To beat the clock is to complete a task or succeed at something before the
deadline or allotted time is up:
“They were set a strict deadline and had to work hard to beat the clock.”
 Someone who is behind the times is old-fashioned and not up-to-date with
modern technology, practices or views:
“My mother is rather behind the times; she still thinks fax machines are a good idea!”
You might say that such a person needs to get with the times.
 To bide your time is to wait patiently for a good opportunity:
“I would love to go on holiday but I’ll have to bide my time until I’ve saved enough.”
 If you call it a day/night you stop what you are doing for that day or evening:
“If your back starts to hurt you should call it a day.”
 When you only just leave yourself enough time to do something we say you
are cutting it fine:
“The meeting starts at 1pm. Aren’t you cutting it a bit fine if you catch the 12:30 train?”
 We say the phrase here today, gone tomorrow to refer to something that
appears or exists only for a short time:
“The high street is full of shops that are here today, gone tomorrow.”
 Something that happens in the blink of an eye is extremely quick. This idiom can
also be used metaphorically to talk about something that seems to happen very fast:
“I feel like my teenage years passed in the blink of an eye.”
 In the nick of time is another way to say just in time or at the last possible
moment:
“We got there in the nick of time after being stuck in traffic.”
Don’t confuse this with in the nick which is a colloquial term for in jail.
 To kill time is to do something not very interesting or useful while waiting for time
to pass:
“They arrived early and had to kill time before the show started.”
You’ll also hear it used in this way: “I have two hours to kill before lunchtime.”
 Once in a blue moon means very rarely or almost never:
“He tidies his bedroom once in a blue moon.”
 If you are pressed/pushed/strapped for time it means you are in a hurry:
“Sorry I can’t stay and chat; I’m strapped for time today.”
 The phrase time flies expresses surprise at how quickly time passes. We often
lengthen it to time flies when you’re having fun:
“I can’t believe it’s been 3 years since I last saw you. How time flies!”
 When time is of the essence it means that time is limited and deadlines need to
be met:
“You need to work quickly! Time is of the essence if we want to keep our customers
happy!”
 If you have time on your hands you have some spare time with nothing in
particular to do:
“It’s rare for me to have too much time on my hands now I have three children.”
And that’s it for my list of time idioms. I hope you find them helpful. If you can think of
any other idioms to talk about time in English then leave a comment below and perhaps
I’ll add them to the list.

For now, I’m going to call it a day.