Illustration of hourglass
hour·glass
ˈau̇(-ə)r-ˌglas 
: an instrument for measuring time consisting of a glass vessel having two compartments from the upper of which a quantity of usually sand runs in an hour into the lower one
: shaped like an hourglass
an hourglass figure
Examples of hourglass in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 9 Jan. 2026
To McDermott, wearing glasses would be a reminder that more sand might be in the bottom of his hourglass than the top.
—Dan Pompei, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Kate Branch, Vogue, 27 Apr. 2018
Her bright blouse and pants clung to her thick, hourglass figure.
—Aya De Leon, The Root, 22 Apr. 2018
See All Example Sentences for hourglass
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Noun
In another sign of friction, the union profile photo on Instagram as of Friday morning was an hourglass.
—Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 9 Jan. 2026
To McDermott, wearing glasses would be a reminder that more sand might be in the bottom of his hourglass than the top.
—Dan Pompei, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
And yet, her body, designed by a man, had a waist equivalent to 18 inches on a real woman; an impossibly thin figure made even more so by her zaftig 39-inch bust and 33-inch hourglass hip measurement.
—Kate Branch, Vogue, 27 Apr. 2018
Her bright blouse and pants clung to her thick, hourglass figure.
—Aya De Leon, The Root, 22 Apr. 2018
See All Example Sentences for hourglass
Cite this Entry
“Hourglass.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hourglass. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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