[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/hourglass/)

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# hourglass

noun (an hourglass, hourglasses)

«hourglass» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A glass timer with two bulbs joined by a narrow neck, where sand runs from the top to the bottom in a set time. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#m1)
2. A shape narrow in the middle and wide at top and bottom, as in «an hourglass figure». [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#m2)

### In the lessons

In maths and science it is a way to measure time: a one-minute or three-minute sand timer. Board games use small ones. In stories an hourglass shows time running out. Phrases: hourglass shape, sand timer.

### Examples

- Turn the hourglass over and start drawing. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#x1)
- When the sand runs out, your turn is over. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#x2)
- The wizard's hourglass was almost empty. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#x3)
- Our egg timer is a little three-minute hourglass. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#x4)
- A wasp has an hourglass shape. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#x5)
- Time ran out like sand in an hourglass. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/#x6)

### Note

Countable. «an hourglass» because the h is silent. Despite the name, many hourglasses measure minutes, not a full hour — check the time on it in a maths problem. It is not very exact compared with a clock.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «hourglass» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hourglass/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«hourglass» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/hourglass.html) on Mova free.