Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
dictionary thesaurus

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.

First Known Use of water clock

1601, in the meaning defined above

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about 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

More from Merriam-Webster on water clock

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with water clock

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about water clock

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).

Show Comments  Hide Comments 

WORD OF THE DAY

recidivism

Listen to the pronounciation of recidivism

a tendency to relapse

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

Finance Words Quiz

  • a-piggy-bank
  • The etymology of mortgage is related most closely to which two words?
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ
Add Diction

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

TAKE THE QUIZ
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play
Ask the Editors
Word Games