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Glite Dictionary
PST

PST

16 3.4
Time in the western United States that is eight hours behind Greenwich Mean Time
  • noun
  • US
translation icon : hora estándar del Pacífico
  • Ceres reaches opposition, 7 A.M. PST. New Moon is at 3:03 P.M. PST.
  • p.m. PST
  • a.m. PST
  • 8 a.m. PST

And many of the people on that call, I happen to know we're based in EST time zones when LA is PST.

Examples

  • Editor's note: This year, the peak occurs at 5 p.m. PST on Dec. 22.

    Academic text (1994)

  • Please submit your report by 5 p.m. PST on Friday.

  • Editor's note: This year, the Geminids peak at 7 p.m. PST on Dec. 13.

    Academic text (1994)

  • The Moon passes 5 degrees south of Jupiter. 2 P.M. PST. First Quarter Moon is at 2:33 P.M. PST.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Last Quarter Moon is at 11:27 p.m. PST. Neptune is in conjunction with the Sun, 11 a.m. PST.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The Moon passes 1.1 degrees north of Saturn. The full moon is at 3:17 P.M. PST; total lunar eclipse.

    Academic text (2007)

  • Scientists had initially discounted reports of solar anomalies made by Chinese astronaut Xian Wei Ming one month ago, but astronomers around the world are now confirming that solar flares did indeed occur last week beginning at 8 a. m. PST on Tuesday.

    Half-Life (2008)

  • The meeting is scheduled for 3 p.m. PST next Wednesday.

  • The online class will begin at 10 a.m. PST tomorrow.

Synonyms

Pacific Time
vsPST
  • US
4 2.8

A time zone eight hours behind GMT used in the western United States and parts of Canada

is the short written form, not the general time name
Pacific Standard Time
vsPST
  • US
2 3.0

The standard time used on the west coast of the United States and Canada, 8 hours behind GMT

is the short written form used instead of the full name

Surface Forms

PST singular
PSTs plural

Morphology

PST = Pacific + Standard + Time (opaque) = P + S + T

PST is an initialism formed from the initials of a three-word phrase; the letters themselves do not transparently convey the full phrase to learners who do not already know the abbreviation.

Etymology

PST is an abbreviation for Pacific Standard Time, where Pacific points to the Pacific Ocean on the west coast and Standard means the 'normal' or official clock used there. So, PST tells you the usual west-coast time, which is 8 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time.