kill (the) time

phrase

informal

: to spend time doing something while one is waiting

We killed time watching the sailboats on the river.

We killed the time between trains playing video games.

Examples of kill (the) time in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

On long drives with nothing to think about Sparhawk liked to kill time by coming up with band names, aiming for monikers that were both original and hinted at a group’s sound such as Rancid or the Jesus Lizard. — Mark Richardson, Pitchfork, 15 Mar. 2026

But the supervisor won’t be in until the night shift, so to kill time Folarin takes his sons on a series of visits to some friends and some favorite places. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2026

That changed in the Covid-19 pandemic, when the masses took up hobbies like at-home mixology to kill time and, in my case, self-medicate. — Matt Ortile, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Feb. 2026

The 90-minute delay challenged everyone in the arena to find ways to kill time. — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2026