well timed
442
3.5
- adjective
- The Federal Government won't make the return it could have with a small, well-timed capital.
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Watch on YouTubeSo if you're busy, that's actually the best time to change your behaviour.
- So if you're busy, that's actually the best time to change your behaviour.
- And it's probably not the best time to ask Elon Musk.
- So I think right now, like you say, right now is the best time.
- Ellie also decided this was the best time to admit that she was pregnant and that Kay might be the father.
- Yeah, it was saying like the best time to do them, I guess.
- This crash we're in right now is the best time for you to get rich.
- It's my best time to train, but it's also the best time for me to write where I'm freshest.
- So doing it earlier is the best time to do it.
- Well, you know, I'm always just trying to figure out the best time to open a can of water.
Examples
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I have to admit that when I started down this path, a well-timed hot shower before practice in the wintertime helped my body quite a bit.
Blog text (26) -
First, the onside kick was very well timed.
Blog text (13) -
It really means a lot to me and was very well timed.
Blog text (14) -
I'm trying to get on board with this whole concept, and your post was very well timed as I begin my endeavor!
Blog text (11) -
It is not entirely clear what actually caused the award, but its announcement was, at the very least, very well timed.
Academic text (1997) -
But Brandeis keeper Blake Minchoff saw it all the way and managed to steer it away for a corner with a well-timed leap.
Blog text (26) -
This post is so well-timed, since I've been shirking on my gymming (thanks, goofy brain).
Blog text (13) -
The well timed response from the team helped to defuse the situation before it escalated.
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Her well timed joke lightened the mood during a serious meeting.
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He made a well timed intervention that resulted in a successful outcome for the project.
Synonyms
106
3.0
Happening at the right time to be useful
13
6.8
Happening at a good time to be useful
5
3.7
Happening at the best moment to be most useful
1
5.6
Happens at a good time
1
7.6
Happens at the right moment to be useful
Antonyms
How Timely
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'happening at the most suitable moment' is directly derivable from combining 'well' (in a good or suitable way) with 'timed' (occurring or scheduled at a particular time). This adverb + past-participle adjective pattern is a standard, compositional construction in English and in many other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Well timed may come from music and clocks. Imagine a conductor or musician starting a note at exactly the right beat or someone watching a clock so an action happens at the perfect second. The words well and timed show this: if something is done well at the right time, it is 'happening at the right moment'.