timer

American  

[tahy-mer] / ˈtaɪ mər /

noun

1. a person or thing that times. times.

2. a person who measures or records time. times.

3. a device for indicating or measuring elapsed time, times, as a stopwatch.

4. a device for controlling machinery, appliances, or the like, in a specified way at a predetermined time: times.

   Please put the roast in the oven and set the timer to cook it for two hours.

5. (in an internal-combustion engine) a set of points actuated by a cam, which causes the spark for igniting the charge at the instant required.

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timer British  

/ ˈtaɪmə /

noun

1. a device for measuring, recording, or indicating time

2. a switch or regulator that causes a mechanism to operate at a specific time or at predetermined intervals

3. a person or thing that times

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Etymology

Origin of timer

First recorded in 1490–1500; time + -er ¹

Example Sentences

The results indicate that long-term memory relies not on a single on/off switch, but on a sequence of gene-regulating programs that unfold like molecular timers across the brain.

From Science Daily

There was nothing to suggest that compared with other occasions in recent years, the market timers were becoming unusually exuberant.

From Barron's

Millennia before the Clocky alarm or smartphone screen timers, philosophers grappled with the same question: How can we live with intention and follow through?

From The Wall Street Journal

Leaving electric blankets or heated throws on for too long can also be dangerous, so use the timer function.

From BBC

Your heating system may have a timer function which lets you programme particular temperatures at different times of the day.

From BBC

Related Words

• timepiece
• wristwatch