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Glite Dictionary
twenty-four hours

twenty-four hours

64 1.0
A period equal to one full day and night
  • noun
  • /ˈtwɛnti fɔr aʊərz/
translation icon : veinticuatro horas
  • The Earth takes approximately twenty-four hours to complete one full rotation on its axis.
  • twenty-four hours a day
  • within twenty-four hours
  • twenty-four hours later

Examples

  • We have a difficult and time-committed job. Clients expect availability twenty-four hours a day.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Intending to spend a week, he discovered after only twenty-four hours that the place was unbearable.

    Academic text (1996)

  • Oh, not much has changed in the last 24 hours.

    Pearl (2022)

  • All this can be yours if you call within the next 24 hours.

    Maybe I Do (2023)

  • I just wanna say thank you all for all your hard work in the last 24 hours.

    Theater Camp (2023)

  • This department will be closing in 24 hours.

    The End We Start From (2023)

  • I spent three days in the hospital, the first twenty-four hours of that in intensive care.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Although greasy and unattractive, it is open twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year.

    Academic text (1998)

  • Today, such infections are treated with antibiotics and can be alleviated within twenty-four hours of starting medication.

    Academic text (1994)

  • Twenty-four hours later, at the murder scene of the man running the campaign to unseat the mayor, poof.

    Broken City (2013)

Synonyms

day
vstwenty-four hours
∞ 1.0

A period of 24 hours or the time a planet takes to turn once

is the astronomical idea of one complete rotation producing night and light periods
solar day
vstwenty-four hours
  • Specialized
2 3.8

The time from one noon to the next, about 24 hours

is broader meaning the complete rotation and night and light sequence
mean solar day
vstwenty-four hours
  • Specialized
6.3

Average time for Earth to turn once so the Sun appears in the same place, about 24 hours

is the general concept of a planet making a full rotation and night cycle

How Long

month
∞ 1.0
week
∞ 1.0
twenty-four hours
64 1.0
hour
∞ 1.0
minute
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

twenty-four hours singular
twenty four hours singular
24 hours singular

Morphology

24 + hour

The phrase 'twenty-four hours' is a straightforward numerical quantification combining '24' (a number) with 'hour' (a 60-minute unit), so a learner who knows both constituents can infer it denotes a duration of twenty-four one-hour units (i.e., a full day). This compositional, cross-linguistically common pattern makes the meaning directly derivable without prior exposure.

Etymology

Twenty-four hours comes from the simple idea of a full turn of day and night being split into twenty-four parts called hours. So, it means 'a full day' or the time it takes the Earth to make a full turn.