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60 Things That Represent Time

John Spacey, updated on October 02, 2024

Time things are physical things or concepts that represent the abstract dimension known as time. As time is a non-physical element of life that has something of a mysterious nature it is often represented with a physical object such as a clock or an intangible symbol such as a season. The following are common time things.

All (60)

Physical Things (32)

Symbols & Concepts (28)

Ages & Aging	Ancient Calendars
Anniversaries	Antiques
Astrolabe	Birthday Candles
Birthdays	Calendars
Candles Burning Down	Chronicles
Circles	Clocks
Cuckoo Clocks	Cultural Artifacts
Datebooks	Digital Clocks
Eras & Ages	Festivals
Gears	Grandfather Clocks
Graphs of Change Over Time	Historical Artifacts
History Books	Holidays
Home Movies	Hourglasses
Infinity Symbol	Insect Metamorphosis
Journals	Kitchen Timers
Life Cycles	Loops
Memory Boxes	Monuments
Moon Phases	New Years
Old Movies	Old Songs
Pastimes	Pendulum
Photographs	Planners
Pocket Watches	Repeat Symbols
Schedules	Scrapbooks
Seasonal Icons	Seasons
Stopwatches	Sundials
Sunrise & Sunset	Ticking Sound
Tides	Time Capsules
Time Zone Maps	Timelines
Timers	Tree Rings
Watches	Wheels (represents a Cycle)

Physical Things

Physical things that represent time include tools for measuring time and dates such as a clock or calendar. There are also physical things that are symbolic of time such as a photo album.

Symbols of Time

Abstract concepts such as anniversaries and other intangible things such as sounds that are symbolic of time. These include real world things such as seasons and tides that are indicators of time.

What is Time?

In physics, time is viewed as analogous to the dimensions of space that are height, width and depth. We experience the universe not only by navigating these physical dimensions but also by progressing through time.

Definition of Time

The one-way progression of events from the past to present to future.

Time is so hard to define that it is common to define it, within physics, as simply what a clock reads. This feels like a circular definition as a clock measures time such that defining time with a clock isn't particularly helpful.

It is possible to view time as an irreversible chain of cause and effect. One thing happens that leads to another in a chain of events that can't be stopped, altered or reversed once they have occurred. This is time.

Next read: Examples of Time

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