like clockwork
27
3.6
- idiom
- Informal
:
como un reloj
- Of course, it took several years before everything worked like clockwork in that department.
- go like clockwork
- run like clockwork
- just like clockwork
I just keep going like clockwork, right?
- I just keep going like clockwork, right?
- Every day me, Bron and Tristan is working out like clockwork.
- Every time this man breaks up, same thing like clockwork, bro.
- And if, if it goes well, hundreds every week, every week, like clockwork.
- There's a crazy phenomenon that is like clockwork that happens in relationships after you've broken up.
- We'd just go along with it almost like clockwork or like, you know, following certain algorithms.
- What that means is every Wednesday without fail, like clockwork, the store owner puts out the new comics.
- And I noticed that the main character moves through four of the six archetypes like clockwork.
- I think it's called London Bridge for Succession has been in place for a very long time and seems to be going like clockwork.
- He just like like clockwork comes in, does his work, doesn't matter how he feels.
Examples
-
If you watch people for long enough, you realize their lives run like clockwork.
-
Make sure everything runs like clockwork.
-
- Every test has gone like clockwork.
-
The rest will go like clockwork.
-
First, a steady income: You know you are getting X dollars from that client each month like clockwork.
Academic text (2011) -
What that means is every Wednesday without fail, like clockwork, the store owner puts out the new comics.
-
Well, plans just hum along like clockwork.
-
Each act was pre-timed for air time requirements, and the whole show ran like clockwork.
Fiction book (1990) -
We rebought, thinking it was a fluke, but like clockwork, six weeks later, it started to leak again.
Blog text (16) -
Every test has gone like clockwork, so we are confident for the final exam.
Synonyms
1
6.9
In a calm, steady way without sudden changes
In a steady, regular way like a clock or drumbeat
Antonyms
How Reliable
- Informal
27
3.6
358
2.7
189
2.5
96
4.7
35
7.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'in a regular and precise manner' is directly inferable from combining 'like' (similar to) with 'clockwork' (a mechanism known for precise, regular operation). This conventional simile uses a clear, concrete image that is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will likely understand the MWE without prior exposure.
Etymology
Like clockwork may come from the exact, regular motion inside a clock, where the small gears and springs move together at a steady speed. So, if something happens like clockwork, it means it happens 'on time' and 'without problems'.