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Suffix · forms nouns / adjectives

-time

Forms compounds naming periods, moments, or eras with a distinct identity: lifetime, peacetime, wartime, pastime, overtime, daytime, nighttime, bedtime.

In Spanish: tiempo de / época deBasic

Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated June 2026

What does -time build?

-time attaches to nouns and adjectives to name periods, times of day, or historical eras with a defined character: Times of day or seasonal periods: • daytime = the hours of daylight • nighttime = the hours of darkness • bedtime = the time for going to sleep • springtime / summertime = spring / summer as poetic eras • halftime = the break midway through a sports match Lifetime or historical eras: • lifetime = the whole span of a person's life • peacetime = the period when a country is not at war • wartime = the period when a country is at war • overtime = time worked beyond normal hours • pastime = an activity that pleasantly occupies one's time

Lifetime: the most literary compound

"Lifetime" carries special emotional weight, designating the whole span of a person's existence or the full duration of something. It appears in fixed expressions of great rhetorical force: • "once in a lifetime" = a unique, unrepeatable experience • "the opportunity of a lifetime" • "a lifetime of work" = an entire career of effort • "in my lifetime" = during the span of my life • "lifetime achievement award" = an award for a whole career In literature, "a lifetime" creates a sense of temporal vastness and accumulated weight.

Peacetime and wartime: the historical pair

"Peacetime" and "wartime" form a semantically essential pair in history, journalism, and political literature. They establish the epic context in which a narrative or argument unfolds: "In wartime, ordinary rules are suspended." "Peacetime prosperity gave way to wartime austerity." Both also work as adjectives: "a wartime leader," "wartime rationing," "peacetime dividend" (the economic benefit of ending a conflict).

How it is pronounced

-time/taɪm/ · sounds like "time"

Tap the button to hear how the ending sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.

Examples

Base word
With -time
In a phrase
  • lifelifetimeShe dedicated a lifetime to the study of ancient languages.
  • peacepeacetimeIn peacetime, the army focuses on training and readiness.
  • warwartimeWartime rationing meant families survived on very little.
  • passpastimeReading was her favourite pastime on rainy afternoons.
  • overovertimeThe workers were paid extra for the overtime they had put in.
  • daydaytimeOwls are rarely seen during the daytime.
  • nightnighttimeThe nighttime temperature dropped well below zero.
  • bedbedtimeThe children always wanted one more story at bedtime.

Common mistakes

it is a lifetime opportunity
it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

The fixed idiom is "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" = an unrepeatable chance. "Lifetime opportunity" alone is understood but less idiomatic.

pastimes is always plural
a pastime / pastimes (countable)

"Pastime" is countable: "reading is my favourite pastime," "the pastimes of the aristocracy." It is not uncountable.

A trick to remember it

Learn "once in a lifetime" as a fixed phrase: "a once-in-a-lifetime experience / opportunity / chance." It is one of the most natural and frequent collocations with -time. Also essential: "in my lifetime," "wartime measures," "peacetime economy," "work overtime."

Practise what you learned

Exercise 1 · Form the word

Fill in: "Seeing the Northern Lights was a ___ experience." (unrepeatable)

Hint: The fixed phrase for something that happens only once in life.

Exercise 2 · Pick the right one

"Wartime rationing meant families had to survive on very little." What does "wartime" mean here?

Exercise 3 · Form the word

Fill in: "Gardening has been her favourite ___ for decades." (leisure activity)

Hint: Pass + time: what pleasantly passes the time.

Frequently asked questions

What does the suffix -time mean in English?

The suffix -time forms compounds naming periods, moments, or eras with a distinct identity: lifetime, peacetime, wartime, pastime, overtime, daytime, nighttime, bedtime. In Spanish it usually maps to tiempo de / época de.

How do you pronounce -time?

The ending -time is pronounced /taɪm/ · sounds like "time". For example, "lifetime".

Can you give an example of a word with -time?

"life" becomes "lifetime". It is a typical example of the -time suffix.

Other useful suffixes

  • -born

    From Old English "boren" (born): forms adjectives of birth condition, origin or destiny. Firstborn, highborn, stillborn, freeborn, newborn.

  • -fall

    Forms compounds naming types of descent, precipitation, or figurative collapse: downfall, nightfall, rainfall, windfall, pitfall, waterfall, shortfall.

  • -land

    Forms compounds naming territories with a defined identity: homeland, wasteland, heartland, highland, lowland, farmland, woodland.

Learn every English suffix

-tion, -ness, -ful, -ly, -able... every ending you need to understand thousands of words at once.

View all suffixes
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