"keep time" meaning in English

See keep time in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

Forms: keeps time [present, singular, third-person], keeping time [participle, present], kept time [participle, past], kept time [past]
Etymology: From Middle English time kepen, kepen time, etc. Etymology templates: {{inh|en|enm|time kepen}} Middle English time kepen, {{m|enm|kepen time}} kepen time Head templates: {{en-verb|keep<,,kept> time}} keep time (third-person singular simple present keeps time, present participle keeping time, simple past and past participle kept time)
  1. To measure time. Derived forms: keep good time Related terms: timekeeper, timekeeping
    Sense id: en-keep_time-en-verb-612k2tSM
  2. To indicate the time correctly (of a timepiece).
    Sense id: en-keep_time-en-verb-ExFqBN5D Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 4 21 32 39 5
  3. To make any regular rhythmical movements at the same time with others.
    Sense id: en-keep_time-en-verb-q~SecIyG Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 4 21 32 39 5
  4. To control the beat or rhythm of a song played by a music group.
    Sense id: en-keep_time-en-verb-UcYyDOIk Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 4 21 32 39 5
  5. To maintain a schedule set out in a timetable. (e.g. of a train)
    Sense id: en-keep_time-en-verb-ulE9RnxT

Download JSON data for keep time meaning in English (3.2kB)

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  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "time kepen"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English time kepen",
      "name": "inh"
    },
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "enm",
        "2": "kepen time"
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      "expansion": "kepen time",
      "name": "m"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "From Middle English time kepen, kepen time, etc.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "keeps time",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
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    },
    {
      "form": "keeping time",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
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    },
    {
      "form": "kept time",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "kept time",
      "tags": [
        "past"
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  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "keep<,,kept> time"
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      "expansion": "keep time (third-person singular simple present keeps time, present participle keeping time, simple past and past participle kept time)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "derived": [
        {
          "_dis1": "41 32 23 0 4",
          "word": "keep good time"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To measure time."
      ],
      "id": "en-keep_time-en-verb-612k2tSM",
      "related": [
        {
          "_dis1": "41 32 23 0 4",
          "word": "timekeeper"
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        {
          "_dis1": "41 32 23 0 4",
          "word": "timekeeping"
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          "word": "lose time"
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      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "4 21 32 39 5",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
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          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "How well does this old watch keep time?",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To indicate the time correctly (of a timepiece)."
      ],
      "id": "en-keep_time-en-verb-ExFqBN5D"
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      "categories": [
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      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "He couldn't carry a tune in a wheelbarrow, but he keeps time like a damn machine.",
          "type": "example"
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      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To make any regular rhythmical movements at the same time with others."
      ],
      "id": "en-keep_time-en-verb-q~SecIyG",
      "links": [
        [
          "regular",
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      "categories": [
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      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Isn't one of the conductor's main jobs to keep time?",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To control the beat or rhythm of a song played by a music group."
      ],
      "id": "en-keep_time-en-verb-UcYyDOIk",
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          "beat",
          "beat"
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    },
    {
      "antonyms": [
        {
          "word": "lose time"
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      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1959 April, P. Ransome-Wallis, “The Southern in Trouble on the Kent Coast”, in Trains Illustrated, London: Ian Allan Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 220",
          "text": "We never had a chance even to attempt to keep time. An empty stock train from Stewarts Lane was given the road just ahead of us, and from Grosvenor Bridge to Herne Hill we had the signals against us all the way.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To maintain a schedule set out in a timetable. (e.g. of a train)"
      ],
      "id": "en-keep_time-en-verb-ulE9RnxT",
      "links": [
        [
          "timetable",
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        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "keep time"
}
{
  "categories": [
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    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English terms derived from Middle English",
    "English terms inherited from Middle English",
    "English verbs"
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  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "keep good time"
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  ],
  "etymology_templates": [
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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
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        "3": "time kepen"
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      "args": {
        "1": "enm",
        "2": "kepen time"
      },
      "expansion": "kepen time",
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      "form": "kept time",
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      "form": "kept time",
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  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "related": [
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      "word": "timekeeper"
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      "word": "timekeeping"
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  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "To measure time."
      ]
    },
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          "word": "lose time"
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      "categories": [
        "English terms with usage examples"
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        {
          "text": "How well does this old watch keep time?",
          "type": "example"
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        "To indicate the time correctly (of a timepiece)."
      ]
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        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
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        {
          "text": "He couldn't carry a tune in a wheelbarrow, but he keeps time like a damn machine.",
          "type": "example"
        }
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        "To make any regular rhythmical movements at the same time with others."
      ],
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    {
      "categories": [
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      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Isn't one of the conductor's main jobs to keep time?",
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        "To control the beat or rhythm of a song played by a music group."
      ],
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          "beat",
          "beat"
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          "rhythm",
          "rhythm"
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          "word": "lose time"
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        {
          "ref": "1959 April, P. Ransome-Wallis, “The Southern in Trouble on the Kent Coast”, in Trains Illustrated, London: Ian Allan Publishing, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 220",
          "text": "We never had a chance even to attempt to keep time. An empty stock train from Stewarts Lane was given the road just ahead of us, and from Grosvenor Bridge to Herne Hill we had the signals against us all the way.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To maintain a schedule set out in a timetable. (e.g. of a train)"
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "timetable",
          "timetable"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "keep time"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-01 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.