The countdown kept ticking at the back of his mind.

But the clock kept ticking and then I thought maybe he's not coming.

Wear out, perhaps, or be damaged beyond possible repair, but even then the life would keep ticking in the brain.

Time dilated as the seconds kept ticking slowly, agoniz- ingly so, and still the door did not open.

I walked along, but there was something that kept ticking away in my head, something I couldn't get hold of.

It's our lives we are buying, and the clock keeps ticking to decide.

His eyes kept ticking back and forth from the rearview mirror to the winding road ahead.

Dad's eyes kept ticking back to the tattoo.

As each day passes, the clock keeps ticking for the Knicks.

"The market thinks the additional production just isn't coming on on schedule, and the clock keeps ticking away," he said.