biological clock

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English

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Noun

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biological clock (plural biological clocks)

  1. (biology) Any of several mechanisms that regulate the periodicity of biological functions, such as the circadian rhythm.
    • 2005 US Department of Health - Your guide to healthy sleep
      Your biological clock is actually a tiny bundle of cells in your brain that responds to light signals received through your eyes.
  2. (figuratively) A notional clock to which people should pay attention, lest menopause or andropause kicks in and it is too late for them to have children.
    Her biological clock is ticking.
    • 1994, Rugh Winter, Bonnie Eaker-Weil, Adultery, the Forgivable Sin:
      Take Linda, a thirty-nine-year-old newscaster who relished her career but began to hear the alarm ringing on her biological clock.

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