Illustration of hourglass
hour·glass
ˈau̇(-ə)r-ˌglas 
: an instrument for measuring time consisting of a glass vessel having two compartments from the upper of which a quantity of usually sand runs in an hour into the lower one
: shaped like an hourglass
an hourglass figure
Examples of hourglass in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 12 Apr. 2024
What Is a Black Widow Spider? (Credit: Mark Kostich/Shutterstock)
Black widow spiders, known scientifically as Latrodectus, are instantly recognizable by their glossy black bodies and the iconic red hourglass marking on their abdomens (at least the females are).
—Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024
The Lakers had just gotten smacked in their previous two games, with James simply tweeting the hourglass emoji.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
In late January, LeBron tweeted out an hourglass emoji in the middle of the night following the team’s loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
—Sean Neumann, Peoplemag, 19 Feb. 2024
This saga began after James’ apparent expressions of discontentment, with James cryptically posting an hourglass emoji on X (formerly known as Twitter) after the Lakers’ 138-122 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 30, which put the Lakers at 24-25 on the season.
—Khobi Price, Orange County Register, 14 Feb. 2024
Black widow spiders Females have shiny black bodies and red hourglass markings on their abdomens; males may be gray or brown with little red spots.
—The Arizona Republic, 14 Feb. 2024
Male black widow spiders are smaller and less vivid in color compared to females, often exhibiting gray, brown, or reddish hues without the iconic red hourglass marking found on females.
—Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024
This gorgeous hourglass pillar candle combines the look of a taper candle and holder all in one for the perfect centerpiece.
—Taylor Gumm, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2024
Kate Branch, Vogue, 27 Apr. 2018
Her bright blouse and pants clung to her thick, hourglass figure.
—Aya De Leon, The Root, 22 Apr. 2018
Noun
The strapless gown has a tube silhouette with a dramatic train, providing an hourglass effect.
—Jessie Quinn, Peoplemag, 12 Apr. 2024
What Is a Black Widow Spider? (Credit: Mark Kostich/Shutterstock)
Black widow spiders, known scientifically as Latrodectus, are instantly recognizable by their glossy black bodies and the iconic red hourglass marking on their abdomens (at least the females are).
—Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024
The Lakers had just gotten smacked in their previous two games, with James simply tweeting the hourglass emoji.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
In late January, LeBron tweeted out an hourglass emoji in the middle of the night following the team’s loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
—Sean Neumann, Peoplemag, 19 Feb. 2024
This saga began after James’ apparent expressions of discontentment, with James cryptically posting an hourglass emoji on X (formerly known as Twitter) after the Lakers’ 138-122 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 30, which put the Lakers at 24-25 on the season.
—Khobi Price, Orange County Register, 14 Feb. 2024
Black widow spiders Females have shiny black bodies and red hourglass markings on their abdomens; males may be gray or brown with little red spots.
—The Arizona Republic, 14 Feb. 2024
Male black widow spiders are smaller and less vivid in color compared to females, often exhibiting gray, brown, or reddish hues without the iconic red hourglass marking found on females.
—Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb. 2024
This gorgeous hourglass pillar candle combines the look of a taper candle and holder all in one for the perfect centerpiece.
—Taylor Gumm, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2024
Adjective
And yet, her body, designed by a man, had a waist equivalent to 18 inches on a real woman; an impossibly thin figure made even more so by her zaftig 39-inch bust and 33-inch hourglass hip measurement.
—Kate Branch, Vogue, 27 Apr. 2018
Her bright blouse and pants clung to her thick, hourglass figure.
—Aya De Leon, The Root, 22 Apr. 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hourglass.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Hourglass.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hourglass. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
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Kids Definition
hourglass
noun
hour·glass
ˈȧu(ə)r-ˌglas
: an instrument for measuring time in which usually sand runs from the upper part to the lower part of a glass container in an hour
hourglass
adjective
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