water clock

noun

Definition of water clock

: an instrument designed to measure time by the fall or flow of a quantity of water

— called also clepsydra

Examples of water clock in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The need to gauge the divisions of the day and night led the ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans to create sundials, water clocks and other early chronometric tools. — William J. H. Andrewes, Scientific American, "Time Keeping Has a Long, Colorful History," 23 Jan. 2012

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'water clock.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about water clock

Dictionary Entries near water clock

Statistics for water clock

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for water clock

The first known use of water clock was in 1601

See more words from the same year

Comments on water clock

What made you want to look up water clock? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

WORD OF THE DAY

gibbous

irregularly rounded

Test Your Vocabulary

What did you just call me?! A Quiz

If a member of the audience describes your speech as bombastic, does that person mean it is:

pompous and overblown rousing and inspiring

How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!

TAKE THE QUIZ

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games