- the mechanism of a clock
- any similar mechanism, as in a wind-up toy
- like clockwork ⇒ with complete regularity and precision
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
clock•work /ˈklɑkˌwɜrk/USA pronunciation
n.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Time[uncountable] the mechanism of a clock.
- any mechanism similar to that of a clock:[countable]toys run by a winding clockwork.
- Idioms like clockwork, [uncountable] with regularity or precision:Here she comes, home at 6:30, like clockwork.
clock•work
(klok′wûrk′),USA pronunciation n.
- Timethe mechanism of a clock.
- any mechanism similar to that of a clock.
- like clockwork, with perfect regularity or precision:The launching of the spacecraft went off like clockwork.
- clock1 + work 1620–30
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
clockwork /ˈklɒkˌwɜːk/ n
'clockwork' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Baylis
- Burgess
- gramophone
- Kubrick
- pendulum
- phonograph
- spit
- wind
- wind up
- coelostat
- guided missile
- heliostat
- motion work