to tick
- verb
- /tɪk/
- Does that second hand tick or does it sweep?
- the clock ticks
- time ticks
- ticks every second
But because I've been moving relative to you, my time ticks a little slower.
- But because I've been moving relative to you, my time ticks a little slower.
- Tick tock, tick, tock, tick tock.
- Time is ticking more slowly near the positive mass.
- Every single day she's cancelled her cards and she'll start the clock ticking on her two years.
- And, and, and so it's so that you know, the clock's ticking, time's running out.
- How come the clock on my phone doesn't tick?
Examples
-
As the audience waited, the old clock continued to tick steadily in the background.
-
Guys, the clock is ticking .
-
OK, So the assumption is that the clocks tick off proper time.
-
The clock is ticking here.
-
Something in the gears would tick as he led the bike under her window.
Fiction book (1993) -
In fact, let's count up so you can start ticking the hours off.
Fiction book (1990) -
I mean, it's probably ticking away in both our minds, right?
Fiction book (1992) -
The clock is ticking.
-
Who's gonna stop us? - Come on, there's like 10 million people in this city, and the clock is ticking.
-
The clock's ticking.
Synonyms
Make a short sharp sound like a small tap
To make a short sharp sound like a clock
To make short, sharp clicking sounds
To make a repeated ticking sound like a clock
To make a repeated ticking sound like a clock
Idioms
Phrasal Verbs
Compounds
- Specialized
A small blood-sucking bug that bites animals and people and can carry Lyme disease
A small tick found in eastern North America that bites people and can give them Lyme disease
A common tick in North America that can spread diseases like Rocky Mountain spotted fever
- Specialized
A tick with a hard shield on its back and mouth parts that stick out from its head
- Archaic
A disease caused by tiny germs that spreads to people from reddish-brown ticks on dogs and other animals
A game for two players who take turns marking a three by three grid to make three in a row
- Specialized
A plant with three small leaves and sticky pods that cling to clothes or animals
- UK
A small parasite that sticks to sheep and other animals and can spread disease to animals and people
- Specialized
A small blood-sucking animal without a hard shell on its back that bites animals and birds
- Specialized
A tick in the western United States that bites people and spreads Lyme disease
How Loud
Surface Forms
Etymology
Tick as a verb comes from the same idea: it names the regular short sound a clock or timer makes, so when something 'ticks' it makes that small, steady noise.