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

in time

13 2.2
At the right beat so movement matches the music
  • idiom
translation icon : 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
6 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
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
1 4.9
in time
13 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'.