1648 J. Mason Princeps Rhetoricus 5 (table) The Timer of the Bell & hourglasse.

1845 N. P. Willis Dashes at Life with Free Pencil iv. 16/1 It was the great day of the Union races..and the ‘timer’ in the stand looked as bleak as a bell-ringer setting the clock on a cold day in a country belfry.

1891 Cycling 21 Feb. 82 I am aware that timers of professional events in the Midlands use the old-fashioned type.

1920 A. Geer Shadow Boxing 45 Ten seconds before the beginning and ending of each round the timer shall give warnings to the seconds of contestants by the blowing of a whistle.

1962 G. Barr Young Scientist & Sports 99 Watch the timer's gun. First you will see the puff of smoke. Then you will hear the report of the gun.

2006 B. J. Sharkey & S. E. Gaskill Sport Physiol. for Coaches 72/2 At the allotted time for the 40-yard sprint.., the timer yells ‘End.’

1876 Horol. Jrnl. Jan. 28/1 All timekeepers..must be accompanied by a certificate bearing the number of the watch or chronometer, the name of the maker, the name of the timer, [etc.].

1884 F. J. Britten Watch & Clockmakers' Handbk. (new ed.) 14 The want of constancy in the force of the balance spring..is one of the chief difficulties of the timer.

1893 Jewelers' Circular 8 Mar. 35/1 The little work, designed to assist the timer of fine-grade watches in his difficult work of bending the Philipps terminal curves on spring with regulator as well as without it, consists of 6 pages.

1940 F. J. Camm Watches Adjustment & Repair xviii. 121 The timer's job is to so adjust the overcoil of a hairspring that the watch has an even rate irrespective of whether the spring is fully-wound, half-wound, or nearly-wound.

1975 A. Smith Clocks & Watches ii. 39 Final adjustment was done by the timer, who fitted the balance spring and adjusted the escapement.

1869 G. Dodd Dict. Manuf. 320/2 Some or other of them [sc. varieties of sand] are used in..hour-glasses and egg-timers.

1897 Jewelers' Circular 28 July 24/1 (advt.) Horse and Bicycle Timers. Split second timers.

1899 N.Y. Times 2 Jan. 10/7 When the timer runs down at the expiration of the period for which it is set, this dog is raised automatically.

1916 Dental Cosmos Apr. 381 The mass should then be kneaded in the hand from one-half to one minute, measured by the watch or the timer.

1953 R. Chandler Long Good-bye v. 25 I stirred the coffee and covered it. I set my timer for three minutes... The bell of the timer went just as I got back.

1962 E. Bruton Dict. Clocks & Watches 181 The push button of a pocket timer is pressed once to start the hands, again to stop them, and a third time to return them to zero.

2008 N.Y. Mag. 12 May 50/3 Like the press pots of coffee that arrive with miniature hourglass timers, the offer is a small, civilized gesture.

1901 Horseless Age 13 Nov. 702/3 Primary ignition is still used, but no timer has been added.

1920 C. H. Stagg High Speed vi. 103 He adjusted a timer on one of the cars.

1936 Pop. Sci. Monthly July 114/3 When you're sure it can't be the timer that's stopped the car, the next step is to check the spark.

2004 G. Field Orig. Harley-Davidson Knucklehead i. 31/1 The timer's main functions are to open the breaker points, and to time the break so that it occurs at precisely the right instant.

1934 Pop. Mech. July 37/2 One application for the timer is in connection with the electric range. Cooking can be started, completed and stopped without attention.

1939 C. Morley Kitty Foyle i. 9 They worked right round the clock..making some kind of timers for shells.

1977 New Yorker 27 June 89/1 Attached to the timer of the bomb was a note.

1982 Listener 15 July 34/3 These timers are perfectly adequate for some domestic tasks, like..switching lights on and off in a house to fool..burglars.

2004 Indianapolis Star 26 June (State ed.) e7/5 If you have a large garden, then you probably have a built-in sprinkler system—on a timer.