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Glite Dictionary
Pacific Time

Pacific Time

4 2.8
A time zone eight hours behind GMT used in the western United States and parts of Canada
  • noun
  • /pəˈsɪfɪk taɪm/
  • US
translation icon : Hora del Pacífico
  • Entries must be received by 10 a.m., Pacific Time on Friday to be eligible, so don't delay!
  • 8:00 Pacific Time
  • 1:00 Pacific Time
  • P.M. Pacific Time

And I imagine most people are on Pacific Time, which is already fairly late, and others might be a bit further east.

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Examples

  • As of 11:54 PM Pacific Time, voters have come down in favor of marriage equality in Maine, Maryland, and Minnesota.

    Blog text (14)

  • The meeting will start at 3:00 PM Pacific Time, so please be punctual.

  • And I imagine most people are on Pacific Time, which is already fairly late, and others might be a bit further east.

    Stanford

  • And my first question for you is, it's a little bit past noon Pacific Time right now.

  • In fact, the Clips have yet to leave the Pacific Time Zone this season.

    Blog text (18)

  • Or do you just try and stay on Pacific Time while you're away?

  • So if the World Series (which begins at 5 PM Pacific Time tonight) goes a full seven games, expect at least three broken bats.

    Blog text (28)

  • No matter where you are, make sure you tune in tonight at 7 PM Pacific Time, and don't forget that this success isn't the goal of our explorations; it's only the beginning.

    Blog text (10)

  • Please submit your application by 5:00 PM Pacific Time to ensure consideration.

  • The concert begins at 7:30 PM Pacific Time, which is 10:30 PM on the East Coast.

Synonyms

PST
vsPacific Time
  • US
16 3.4

Time in the western United States that is eight hours behind Greenwich Mean Time

is the full name used to refer to the same time zone
Pacific Standard Time
vsPacific Time
  • US
2 3.0

The standard time used on the west coast of the United States and Canada, 8 hours behind GMT

is the more general regional name for that same time zone

Surface Forms

Pacific Time singular
Pacific Times plural

Morphology

Pacific + time

The phrase combines a place-name 'Pacific' with 'time' to mean the time used in the Pacific region (i.e., the regional time zone), which is a regular, compositional naming pattern (compare 'Eastern Time', 'Central Time'). A B1 learner who knows both words will therefore understand it refers to the region's time even if they might not know the exact GMT offset.

Etymology

Pacific Time comes from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast. The word Pacific names the ocean and Time means the clocks used there, so the phrase refers to the 'time zone' used by places on the west coast of the United States and Canada.