Meaning
hourglass, sand timer
- a device with two glass bulbs linked by a narrow channel, measuring time by falling sand
In a sentence
La sabbia scende lentamente attraverso il collo della clessidra.
The sand drops slowly through the neck of the hourglass.
Usiamo una piccola clessidra per cronometrare i turni del gioco.
We use a small hourglass to time the game turns.
Il tempo nella clessidra è ormai quasi terminato.
The time in the sand timer is now almost up.
Word forms (2)
| Word | Word forms |
|---|---|
| clessidra | feminine · singular |
| clessidre | feminine · plural |
Usage notes
- Often used metaphorically for the passage or running out of time.