round the clock
7
3.0
- idiom
:
todo el día
- The hospital has staff available round the clock to care for patients in need.
- working round the clock
- run round the clock
And so it was like round the clock, but I learned so much and volunteering, I highly recommend it.
- And so it was like round the clock, but I learned so much and volunteering, I highly recommend it.
Examples
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The security team monitors the building round the clock to ensure everyone's safety.
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Everybody works round the clock.
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Listen, we'll watch you round the clock.
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I want to watch her round the clock.
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We provide emergency services round the clock.
Blog text (9) -
Factories going round the clock.
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You'll be on it round the clock.
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The CIA worked round the clock to disrupt threats worldwide.
Blog text (6) -
"They have been working practically round the clock, before and after the storm—we are so proud of their efforts and spirit of service when faced with such overwhelming circumstances."
Blog text (24) -
During the emergency, technicians worked round the clock to restore power to the affected areas.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
Happens without stopping
97
3.9
Happening at all times, day and night
59
3.0
Happens all day and all night without stopping
24
3.9
Happening all day and all night without stopping
20
2.4
Available at any time, both during the day and at night
8
3.2
Happening all day and night without stopping
1
2.5
All the time without stopping
How Continuous
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'round' (around/throughout) combined with 'clock' (the 24‑hour time cycle) yields the interpretation 'throughout the day and night'. This locative/temporal composition is common cross‑linguistically and follows a standard English pattern, so a B1 learner who knows the parts will readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Round the clock comes from the image of a clock's hands going round in a full circle and showing every hour of the day. So, saying something happens round the clock means it happens 'continuously' or 'all day and night'.