Meaning & use
wrist watch
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A small clock worn on a strap around the wrist.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a wrist watch, two wrist watches.
Patterns
- wear a wrist watch
- a wrist watch with a leather strap
He checked his wrist watch and realized he was late.
She bought a new wrist watch for her father's birthday.
My old wrist watch stopped working, so I need a new battery.
Word forms
| plural | wrist watches |
|---|
Common combinations
- wear a wrist watch
- Most people wear a wrist watch on their left arm.
- check your wrist watch
- He kept checking his wrist watch during the meeting.
- a digital wrist watch
- A digital wrist watch is easy to read in the dark.
- a wrist watch strap
- The wrist watch strap broke, so she replaced it.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- wristwatch noun
- The one-word spelling of the same object.
Commonly confused: wrist watch or pocket watch?
wrist watch vs pocket watch
A pocket watch is carried in a pocket and usually has a chain, while a wrist watch is worn on the wrist.
Practice
She looked at her ______ to see if it was time to leave.
Choose one answer.
A wrist watch is worn on the wrist and can be checked easily; a wall clock is on a wall, and an alarm clock is usually by the bed. A pocket watch is carried in a pocket, not worn.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “wrist watch”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.