bottom of the hour

noun

The time at (or very close to) half the next hour of time.

“At seven o'clock, he said to get in touch with him again at the bottom of the hour, so I called him back at seven thirty.”

Opposite
top of the hour
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Meanings

nounbottom of the hour (plural bottoms of the hour or bottoms of the hours)

plural bottoms of the hour · plural bottoms of the hours

  1. The time at (or very close to) half the next hour of time.

    At seven o'clock, he said to get in touch with him again at the bottom of the hour, so I called him back at seven thirty.

Synonyms & antonyms

Opposite
top of the hour

Origin

Refers to the time when the position of the long hand is pointing toward the number 6, or exactly halfway between the preceding hour and the upcoming one.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

bottom of the hour. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bottom%20of%20the%20hour

MLA

“bottom of the hour.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bottom%20of%20the%20hour. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bottom of the hour,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bottom%20of%20the%20hour.

Source: bottom of the hour on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.