Where does “clock the tea” come from?

clock the tea (English) comes from English clock, from Middle English clokke, from Middle Dutch clocke, from Old Dutch *clocca, from Proto-West Germanic *klokkā, from Medieval Latin clocca, from Old Irish cloc, from Proto-Celtic klokkos.

clock the tea (English): To discover the truth about something

Definitions

  1. To discover the truth about something

Ancestry of “clock the tea”, step by step

clock the tea traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via English clock

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishclockAn instrument used to measure or keep track of...
2Middle Englishclokkeclock, timekeeping device
3Middle Dutchclockebell; something bell-shaped
4Old Dutch*cloccabell
5Proto-West Germanic*klokkābell
6Medieval Latincloccabell; travelers' cape, literally “a bell”, so...
7Old Irishclocbell; clock
8Proto-Celticklokkosbell
9Proto-Indo-Europeanklēg-

via English The

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishTheUsed before a noun phrase, including a simple noun
2Middle Englishþethe; Second-person singular pronoun indicating a...
3Middle EnglishinAny kind of accomodation; particularly; A home or...
4Old Englishinnin; inn
5Old Englishinneinside, in; indoors
6Proto-Germanicinnaiwithin, inside
7Proto-Germanicinin; into
8Proto-Indo-Europeanénin

via English TEA

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishTEATraining and employment agency; Acronym of...
2Dutchtheetea
3Malaytehtea
4Malayputihwhite
5Classical Malayputihwhite
6Proto-Malayicputihwhite
7Proto-Malayo-Polynesian(ma-)putiqwhite
Every word from Proto-Indo-European klēg-Every word from Proto-Celtic klokkosEvery word from Old Irish cloc