clockwork
UK/ˈklɒkwɜːk//ˈklɑkwɝk/
clockwork noun: a mechanism powered by a coiled spring and regulated by some form of escapement; the power is transmitted through toothed gearwheels and used to drive a mechanical clock, toy, or other device.
Noun
clockwork (usually uncountable, plural clockworks)
- A mechanism powered by a coiled spring and regulated by some form of escapement; the power is transmitted through toothed gearwheels and used to drive a mechanical clock, toy, or other device.
- Many contrivances for making model horses move up and down as on roundabouts were patented in 1887, and toy horses pulling toy carts were made to imitate galloping by means of clockwork.1971, Gwen White, Antique Toys And Their Background, page 67
- The action of behaving mechanically in the manner of a clock.
- The mind feeds upon the body: pale sickness, and early decrepitude, overmaster even its spiritual essence. Too late it discovers that this earth is its prison, and not its home: the heart beats, and its pulses are the clockwork of wretchedness:...1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “An Evening Alone”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 307
Adjective
clockwork (not comparable)
clockwork meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Bengali
clockwork in Hindi
- घड़ी का काम
clockwork in Tamil
- கடிகார வேலைப்பாடு, கடிகார வேலை, கடிகார வேலைப்பாடுகள்
clockwork in Marathi
- घड्याळाचे काम, घड्याळ काम, घड्याळकाम
clockwork in Bengali
- ঘড়ির কাজ, ঘড়ি কাজ
More languagesFewer languages
- clockwork in Telugu
- గడియార పని, గడియారం పని, గడియారపు పని
- clockwork in Malayalam
- ക്ലോക്ക് വർക്ക്, ഘടികാരപ്രവർത്തനം, ഘടികാര പ്രവർത്തനം
- clockwork in Kannada
- ಗಡಿಯಾರ ಸಂರಚನೆ
- clockwork in Punjabi
- ਘਡ਼ੀ ਦਾ ਕੰਮ, ਘਡ਼ੀ ਕੰਮ, ਘਡ਼ੀ ਦੀ ਕੰਮ
- clockwork in Gujarati
- ઘડિયાળનું કામ, ઘડિયાળની કામગીરી, ઘડિયાળ કાર્ય
- clockwork in Odia
- ଘଡ଼ିର କାମ, ଘଡ଼ିର କାର୍ଯ୍ଯ଼, ଘଡ଼ି କାର୍ଯ୍ଯ଼
Examples of clockwork in a sentence
- Some old model trains have clockwork drives.
- "Construction in string and clockwork" took first prize.
- Thanks to the volunteers, the event ran like clockwork.
Forms of clockwork
| plural | clockworks |
|---|
Origin of clockwork
From clock + -work.
Words formed from clockwork
Phrases with clockwork
Questions about clockwork
- What does clockwork mean?
- Clockwork means a mechanism powered by a coiled spring and regulated by some form of escapement; the power is transmitted through toothed gearwheels and used to drive a mechanical clock, toy, or other device.
- What is clockwork in Hindi?
- Clockwork in Hindi is घड़ी का काम. See Clockwork meaning in Hindi.
- What part of speech is clockwork?
- Clockwork can be a noun or an adjective.
- How do you pronounce clockwork?
- Clockwork is pronounced /ˈklɑkwɝk/ (US).
- What is the plural of clockwork?
- The plural of clockwork is clockworks.
Words near clockwork in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: clockwork (page history and authors); clockwork (Hindi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Tamil, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Marathi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Bengali, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Telugu, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Malayalam, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); clockwork (Punjabi, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); clockwork (Odia, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license). 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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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-AnotherFriendlyHuman-clockwork.wav.
Cite this entry: “clockwork.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/clockwork. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.