clockwork

noun

clock·​work ˈkläk-ˌwərk 

1

: the inner workings of something

2

: the machinery (such as springs and a train of gears) that run a clock

also : a similar mechanism running a mechanical device (such as a toy)

3

: the precision, regularity, or absence of variation associated with a clock or clockwork

a clockwork operation

—used in the phrase like clockwork to describe something that happens or works in a regular and exact way

This type of star has a wonderful property: Its brightness waxes and wanes like clockwork…

—Ron Cowen

If everything went like clockwork, it would have taken a year to get items in stores.

—Brooks Barnes

Examples of clockwork in a Sentence

the clockwork inside a mechanical toy soldier

Recent Examples on the Web

For most of the last three decades, Sacramento has been adding jobs like clockwork, its payrolls growing from about 400,000 in 1995 to 580,000 in July before declining by 17,100 last month. —Don Lee, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2024

Guilt, possibly, for desiring another woman, and guilt, definitely, for not being able to grieve like clockwork, which may be the most robotic behavior of all. —Jackson Arn, The New Yorker, 16 Sep. 2024

My 72-year-old superman Daily News delivery person, John Pietrangelo, presents my News 366 days, like clockwork, consistently between 2:45 and 3:15 a.m. —Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 25 Mar. 2024

In a precarious attempt to preserve the status quo, father (Michael Shannon) a former energy tycoon, and mother (Tilda Swinton), run their mansion-like bunker (that’s built in an old salt mine) like clockwork. —Tiffany Leigh, Forbes, 12 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1628, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

clockwork

noun

clock·​work ˈkläk-ˌwərk 

: machinery (as in a mechanical toy) containing a set of small cogwheels