What this suffix does
-timed evaluates whether the timing of something was right: well-timed, ill-timed.
ESEN
Suffix · forms adjectives
-timed
Judges whether the moment chosen for something was right: well-timed versus ill-timed (badly timed).
In Spanish: oportuno / en el momento / temporizadamenteIntermediate
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
How it is formed
Adverb + timed.
- well + timedwell-timed
- ill + timedill-timed (badly timed)
- perfectly + timedperfectly-timed
This is not a productive rule you can apply freely: it is a closed set of fixed expressions. Learn them one by one as set phrases.
How it is pronounced
-timed
Tap the button to hear how the ending sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.
Examples
Base word
With -timed
In a phrase
- wellwell-timedHer joke was well-timed and lightened the mood.
- illill-timedHis question was ill-timed, right in the middle of the ceremony.
- badlybadly-timedThe badly-timed announcement upset a lot of employees.
- perfectlyperfectly-timedThe surprise party was perfectly-timed for her birthday.
- poorlypoorly-timedThe poorly-timed update crashed the app during launch.
Common mistakes
well-timed = having taken a long time or the right amount of time
well-timed = occurring at exactly the right moment for maximum effect
"Well-timed" is not about duration but about the moment of occurrence. It does not mean that something took the right amount of time — it means it happened at the right moment. A well-timed question arrives at exactly the point in a conversation when it will be most revealing. A well-timed investment is made at exactly the right market moment.
ill-timed and poorly-timed are different levels of error
ill-timed and poorly-timed mean the same thing; both describe actions taken at an inappropriate or disadvantageous moment
"Ill-timed" and "poorly-timed" are essentially synonymous in modern English. "Ill-timed" has a slightly more formal register; "poorly-timed" is slightly more colloquial. Both describe an action that occurred at the wrong moment, producing a worse effect than it would have had at a different time.
A trick to remember it
well-timed = "timed well", from "time" used as a verb (to calculate the right moment for something). Not the noun "time": here it is an action.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
"an ill-timed joke" is a joke made at...
Frequently asked questions
What does the suffix -timed mean in English?
The suffix -timed judges whether the moment chosen for something was right: well-timed versus ill-timed (badly timed). In Spanish it usually maps to oportuno / en el momento / temporizadamente.
Can you give an example of a word with -timed?
"well" becomes "well-timed". It is a typical example of the -timed suffix.
Other useful suffixes
-going
Describes a direction, an ongoing activity, or a habit: easygoing (relaxed, easy to get along with) and outgoing (sociable, extroverted).
-long
Means "lasting the entire ___": lifelong (lasting a lifetime) and daylong (lasting all day).
-paced
Describes how fast something moves or unfolds: fast-paced versus slow-paced.
Learn every English suffix
-tion, -ness, -ful, -ly, -able... every ending you need to understand thousands of words at once.