hourglass
/ˈaʊəɡlɑːs/ noun, verb
Forms hourglasses hourglassing hourglassed
- noun A clock made of two glass vessels connected by a narrow passage through which sand flows. “After each game turn, invert the hourglass to reset the time limit for the next player.”
- noun (graphical user interface) A cursor, often shaped like an hourglass, indicating that the computer is busy.
- verb (computing, intransitive) To display the cursor as an hourglass indicating that the computer is busy or processing.
Synonyms
Etymology
From hour + glass.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “hourglass”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details