elapsed

Everyday

1. When time has elapsed, it has passed. tree →
2. Elapsed time is the amount of time between a start and an end. tree →

In the lessons

Very common in school maths: «elapsed time» problems ask how long something took. Also in science experiments and sport timers. Phrases: «time elapsed», «elapsed time», «after an hour had elapsed». It tells the reader to find a difference between two times.

Examples

• Ten minutes elapsed before the bus came. tree →
• Find the elapsed time from 9:15 to 10:40. tree →
• The stopwatch shows the elapsed time of the race. tree →
• Hours elapsed while we played the game. tree →
• Not much time had elapsed before the ice melted. tree →
• What is the elapsed time if a film starts at 6:30 and ends at 8:05? tree →
• After some little time had elapsed the Queen spoke one night, and said: tree →

Note

Formal word; everyday talk says «passed» or «went by». Used only about time. Maths: elapsed time = end time − start time; from 9:15 to 10:40 is 1 hour 25 minutes. Count across the hour carefully: minutes go up to 60, not 100.