x

Folder Sign In:

Incorrect Username / Password

Email Address:

 

Password:

 

Create New Account      Password Reminder

x

Folder Sign In:

You've Successfully Logged In!

x

Create New Account:

You do not need to sign in to use this database. However, signing in gains you access to a personal folder that you can use to save items. These items will be archived and made available to you during future database sessions.

Email Address:

 

Password:

 

Already Have Account      Password Reminder

x

Folder Sign In:

You've Successfully Created a New Account!

x

Password Reminder:

Enter your email address and we will send you your password for your Saved Items Folder Account Sign In.

E-mail Address:

 

x

Password Reminder:

Reminder Email sent!

x

E-mail Article:

Send this article to the following E-mail address. Use commas to separate multiple addresses.

E-mail Address:

 

x

E-mail Article:

Article sent!

x
Citation Information
How to Cite
Ammer, Christine. "time flies." Writer's Reference Center. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 9 Apr. 2025. <http://fofweb.infobase.com/wrc/Detail.aspx?iPin=DOC02651>.
x
Record URL
To refer to this page or share this page with others, copy and paste this link:
http://fofweb.infobase.com/wrc/Detail.aspx?iPin=DOC02651

time flies

Definition 
Time moves swiftly onward. Time was said to fly or flee by numerous ancients, especially the Romans, for whom Tempus fugit (translated as "time flies," although it also means "flees") was a well-known proverb. Chaucer wrote, "For though we sleep or wake, or rome, or ryde, Ay fleeth the tyme, it nil no man abyde" (The Clerk's Tale). Occasionally the term was amplified, such as "Time flies as swiftly as an arrow" (in Ken Hoshino's translation of Kaibaka Ekken's Ten Kun, 1710). Today we sometimes say, how time flies, occasionally amplified (either seriously or satirically) with when you're having fun.

Return to Top Return to Top