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24-hour clock

/ˌtwɛntiˈfɔːɹˌaʊə ˈklɒk/US/ˌtwɛntiˈfɔɹˌaʊəɹ ˈklɔk/

24-hour clock noun: a timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are treated as a single period rather than two sets of 12 hours, with the result that midnight is indicated as 00:00 (or sometimes 24:00), and the hours from 1:00 to 11:00 p.m. as 13:00 to 23:00.

24-hour clock: a timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are treated as a single period rather...
Image: Morn, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

24-hour clock (plural 24-hour clocks)

  1. A timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are treated as a single period rather than two sets of 12 hours, with the result that midnight is indicated as 00:00 (or sometimes 24:00), and the hours from 1:00 to 11:00 p.m. as 13:00 to 23:00.
    • Twenty-four hour clock time is gaining in favor.1893, “Time and Its Landmarks”, in J. C. Thomas, editor, Manual of Useful Information […] (The Working Teachers’ Library; V), Chicago, Ill.: The Werner Company, →OCLC, page 41
    • The American Society of Civil Engineers recently announced a meeting of the society to occur at their house in New York at 20.30 o'clock, thus springing the twenty-four hour clock system upon those who wished to attend, and causing some inquiries and explanations as to the time intended. Commodore...1899 February 23, Fred J. Miller, editor, American Machinist: A Practical Journal of Machine Construction, volume XXII, number 8, New York, N.Y.: American Machinist Press, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 33-157...

24-hour clock meaning in Hindi, Bengali, Arabic and Persian

24-hour clock in Hindi

timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are each treated as a single period
24 घंटे की घड़ी 24 ghaṇṭe kī ghaṛī

24-hour clock in Bengali

timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are each treated as a single period
২৪-ঘণ্টার ঘড়ি 24-ghonṭar ghoṛi

24-hour clock in Arabic

timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are each treated as a single period
نظام 24 ساعة

24-hour clock in Persian

timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are each treated as a single period
ساعت بیستوچهار ساعته

Examples of 24-hour clock in a sentence

  • The sidereal clock of the astronomer does run to a regular motion; but our 24-hour clocks do not, as we shall see later.1909 November, James Arthur, “Time and Its Measurement: Part IV”, in H[enry] H[aven] Windsor, editor, Popular Mechanics, volume 12, number...
  • Twenty-four-hour clock.—The use of the 24-hour clock eliminates the use of a.m. and p.m.1978, Lawrence D. Pedde, Warren E. Foote, LeRoy F. Scott, Danny L. King, Dave L. McGalliard, “Featured Units”, in Metric Manual, Denver...

Synonyms of 24-hour clock

Forms of 24-hour clock

plural24-hour clocks
alternative formtwenty-four hour clock
alternative formtwenty-four-hour clock

Origin of 24-hour clock

From 24 + hour + clock.

Words that rhyme with 24-hour clock

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about 24-hour clock

What does 24-hour clock mean?
24-hour clock means a timekeeping convention in which the 24 hours of the day are treated as a single period rather than two sets of 12 hours, with the result that midnight is indicated as 00:00 (or sometimes 24:00), and the hours from 1:00 to 11:00 p.m. as 13:00 to 23:00.
What is 24-hour clock in Hindi?
24-hour clock in Hindi is 24 घंटे की घड़ी (24 ghaṇṭe kī ghaṛī). See 24-hour clock meaning in Hindi.
How do you use 24-hour clock in a sentence?
The sidereal clock of the astronomer does run to a regular motion; but our 24-hour clocks do not, as we shall see later.
What part of speech is 24-hour clock?
24-hour clock is a noun.
How do you pronounce 24-hour clock?
24-hour clock is pronounced /ˌtwɛntiˈfɔːɹˌaʊə ˈklɒk/ (UK).
What is the plural of 24-hour clock?
The plural of 24-hour clock is 24-hour clocks.

Words near 24-hour clock in the dictionary

  1. 24-7
  2. 24-cell
  3. 24-cells
  4. 24-gon
  5. 24-gons
  6. 24-hour clock
  7. 24-hour clocks
  8. 24-hour day
  9. 24-hour days
  10. 24-hour flu
  11. 24/5

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: 24-hour clock (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “24-hour clock.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/24-hour_clock. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.