hour Hear it!

hour definition

hour (o̵ur)

noun

    1. a division of time, one of the twenty-four parts of a day; sixty minutes
    2. one of the twelve points on a clock, watch, etc. marking the beginning or end of such a division the ninth hour
  1. a point or period of time; specif.,
    1. a fixed point or period of time for a particular activity, occasion, etc. the dinner hour
    2. an indefinite period of time of a specified kind his finest hour
    3. a period fixed for work, receiving patients, etc. office hours from 2 to 5
    4. the usual times for getting up or going to bed to keep late hours
  2. the time of day as indicated by a timepiece or as reckoned from midnight to midnight, expressed in hours and minutes arrival at 14:30 hours
  3. a measure of the distance usually covered in an hour two hours from New York to Philadelphia by rail
  4. Astron. a sidereal hour; angular unit equaling 15° measured along the celestial equator
  5. Eccles. a canonical hour or the prayers then said
  6. Educ. a class session of approximately one hour: each hour of a course per week is a unit of academic credit

Etymology: ME < OFr hore < L hora < Gr hōra, hour, time, period, season < IE base *yē-, year, summer (< *ei-, to go) > year

hour Idioms

after hours

after the regular hours for business, school, etc.

hour after hour

every hour or for many successive hours

hour by hour

each hour

of the hour

most prominent at this time

one's hour

the time of one's death

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.