tell time
idiom
US
: to be able to know what time it is by looking at a clock
My son is just learning to tell time.
Examples of tell time in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
These devices tell time, track fitness, and boost productivity.
—
Stefanie Waldek, Travel + Leisure, 19 Jan. 2024
Montblanc Technically, watches are no longer essential to tell time and mechanical sports watches certainly aren’t needed as survival tools.
—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 22 Dec. 2023
Even folks who do drop five figures on watches tend to want something that’ll still tell time (and hold its value) in a couple of decades.
—Umar Shakir, The Verge, 2 Oct. 2023
Its luminescent hands and indexes are designed to tell time even in the dark.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 27 Sep. 2023
See all Example Sentences for tell time 
Stefanie Waldek, Travel + Leisure, 19 Jan. 2024
Montblanc Technically, watches are no longer essential to tell time and mechanical sports watches certainly aren’t needed as survival tools.
—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 22 Dec. 2023
Even folks who do drop five figures on watches tend to want something that’ll still tell time (and hold its value) in a couple of decades.
—Umar Shakir, The Verge, 2 Oct. 2023
Its luminescent hands and indexes are designed to tell time even in the dark.
—Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 27 Sep. 2023
See all Example Sentences for tell time
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tell time.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Tell time.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tell%20time. Accessed 26 Jul. 2024.
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