Oxford Business English Dictionary for Learners of English

timekeeping /'taimki:p 14/ noun [u] a person's ability to arrive in time for things, especially work: He was given a written warning for poor timekeeping, ► timekeeper noun [c]: They are usually good timekeepers—they've never been late before.

'time lag (also lag, 'time lapse) noun [c] the period of time between two connected events: There is usually a time lag between invoicing a customer and getting paid.

'time .limit noun [c] the length of time within which you must do or complete sth: We have to set a time limit for the work, о We don't want to put a time limit on the agreement.

О to fix/set a time limit (for sth) ♦ to impose/place/ put a time limit on sth ♦ to extend/relax a time limit * to go over/overrun a timi limit ♦ the time limit expires

timeline /'taimlain/ noun [c] a line representing when the different stages of an event, a project, etc. took place or will take place: The group has not yet set a timeline for the merger, о There is still no timeline on the proposed job cuts.

time managementnoun [u] the practice or skill of organizing your working time in the most efficient way

.time 'off noun [u] a period when you are away from work because you are ill/sick, taking a holiday/vacation, etc: I need to take time off to study for my exam. О to ask for/get/have/take (some) time off

.time off in lieu /lu:; BrE also lju:/ (abbr TOIL) (also .time in lieu abbr TIL) (both BrE) noun [u] (HR) extra time away from work that employees can have if they have worked extra hours: If they work on Saturdays, they expect time off in lieu during the week. fsynl comp time (AmE) overtime

timeout /'taimaut/ noun [c] (IT) an occasion when an action takes too long to be completed and is automatically cancelled: We're losing too much time through server timeouts.

'time ratenoun [c](HR) an arrangement where people are paid for the number of hours they work rather than for the number of items they produce

time re.corder = time clock

times /taimz/ noun [pl.] used in comparisons to show how much more, better, etc. sth is than sth else: Today we're doing three times as much business as we were two years ago. о Our marketing budget is three times higher than last year.

timescale /'taimskeii/ noun [c] the period of time that it takes for sth to happen or be completed: What's the timescale for this project? о We hope the negotiations will be completed within a six-month timescale.

'time ,seriesnoun [c](Technical) a series of values of a quantity obtained over a period of time, often with equal amounts of time between them: You can use time series data to monitor sales trends over a period of years.

565 tip

'time-server noun [c] used in a disapproving way to describe sb who does as little work as possible in their job because they are just waiting until they leave for another job or finish work completely ► 'time-,serving adjective, noun [u]