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Glite Dictionary
⏰ Early enough ⌛ Eventually 🎵 With the beat
in time

in time

9 2.2
At the right beat so movement matches the music
  • idiom
: a tiempo
  • The dancers moved in time with the upbeat rhythm of the song.
  • in time to the metronome

Examples

  • Look, just sort of walk to the music in time.

    Tea and Sympathy (1956)

  • One woman started moving her body from side to side in time to the chant.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Harry starts to walk faster, clapping in time with the Warriors, performing for the crowd.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • Our clever orchestra conductor had the orchestra play in time with the visual movements of each dance.

    Academic text (2015)

  • Tommy, on the sofa, was smiling and clapping his hands in time to the music.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Her boots scraped the pavement in time with the hurried motion of her hips.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • He clapped his hands in time to the music, feeling each beat.

  • The performers practiced for weeks to ensure they sang in time with each other.

Synonyms

in step
vsin time
15 3.5

Doing something at the same time and in the same way as someone else

matches a musical beat precisely rather than general group harmony
synchronistically
vsin time
1 9.2

In a way that happens at the same time as something else

focuses on precise rhythmic matching with a beat rather than mere simultaneity

Antonyms

offbeat
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A beat that is not the main strong beat and makes the rhythm interesting

How Rhythmic

synchronized
  • US
26 4.9
in time
9 2.2
offbeat
  • Specialized
1 7.4

Surface Forms

in time positive

Morphology

in + time

The sense 'eventually/after some time' follows directly from combining 'in' (locating something within a period) with 'time' (a period or moment), so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer that it means 'after some time' or 'within a certain period'. This temporal preposition + noun composition is cross-linguistically common and therefore largely transparent, though fine distinctions (e.g. 'in time' vs 'on time') may require brief exposure.

Etymology

In time here is like moving with the music: imagine clapping so your hands meet exactly when the drum hits the beat. That's why it means 'in the correct rhythm' or 'with the beat'.