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Glite Dictionary
time-ball

time-ball

1 9.9
A ball that drops from a pole at a set time to show the exact time
  • noun
  • /ˈtaɪm bɔl/
  • Archaic
translation icon : bola horaria
  • The time-ball on the hill is a historic landmark that marks the exact time for the entire city.
  • drop a time-ball

Examples

  • At precisely noon, the time-ball dropped to signal to the nearby ships that it was time to set their clocks.

  • "They matched it with the latest technology, electricity, with a lighted time ball that would be lowered at midnight," Straus added.

    Blog text (3)

  • Every day at noon, the observatory drops a time-ball to help sailors synchronize their watches.

Surface Forms

time-ball singular
time-balls plural

Morphology

time-ball = time + ball (transparent) = time + ball

A straightforward compound: a ball used to signal a particular time, so the meaning follows directly from 'time' + 'ball'.

Etymology

Time-ball comes from two simple words, time ('time') and ball ('round object'). It was a real ball dropped at a set time, often from an observatory or tower so people and ships could see the exact moment, and that's why it means a ball dropped to signal the precise time.