On the mantelpiece, a small ormolu clock ticked quietly.

On the wall above the television cabinet, a small gold clock quietly ticked away.

A clock ticked quietly in the corner.

And an elegant clock on a low shelf, ticking quietly, already showing three thirty in the afternoon.

The great hull was still ticking quietly in the cold air as the hot metal slowly cooled.

In a million vest pockets, a million life-forms quietly tick.

Something came ticking quietly out of the shadows, on a level with her left shouder.

His electric clock ticked quietly on the wall, and the smell of cooking floated from his kitchen.

The balls ticked quietly against each other as she turned the sphere over and over in her hands, not thinking, just remembering.

And some men reacted by pointing out that, if they do have such clocks, they tick quietly.