to keep good time
1
2.7
- phrasal verb
:
marcar bien la hora
- They keep good time if one doesn't shake them too much.
Examples
-
Powering this watch is an automatic movement that should still keep good time 70 years on.
Blog text (22) -
This digital clock keeps good time and is always accurate to the second.
-
One thing about them, they keep good time.
-
It never kept good time anyway.
-
"It keeps good time."
Fiction book (1996) -
"It's pretty cheap, but it keeps good time." My cousin nodded silently.
Fiction book (2002) -
It keeps good time.
-
The well-regulated clock keeps good time and the well-drilled circus seal performs its tricks flawlessly, yet we do not call them "intelligent."
Academic text (1999) -
My grandfather's old watch still keeps good time despite being decades old.
-
If you want a reliable watch, make sure it keeps good time.
Antonyms
How Accurate
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to show the correct time consistently' is directly derivable from combining 'keep' (maintain), 'good' (accurate/well) and 'time' (clock time); the phrase follows ordinary English composition (keep + adjective + noun). This compositional pattern is cross-linguistically common and would be comprehensible to a B1 learner who knows the constituent words.
Etymology
Keep good time may come from the simple image of a watch keeping a steady beat, like a heart or a drum. When the moving parts keep the same rhythm the time stays correct, so the phrase means 'accurate'.