against the clock

基本解釋

Racing against the clock the counters are awash with palettes of eye shadow, eyelash curlers and tweezers.
無論是調配好的眼影，假睫毛膠水還是鑷子都是和時間賽跑的籌碼。
They work against the clock to get the meat on the table while the animal it came from (usually fish, shrimp, squid, etc) is still alive and twitching.
在這些海鮮被撈起來后（通常是魚、蝦、魷魚、或是其它），他們就必須爭分奪秒地在它們還活著，能掙扎的時候取得肉。
Play games against the clock. Timed board games, cell phone, computer and video games help you think quickly, flexibly and pay attention, which boosts memory.
玩有時間限制的游戲。計時的桌面游戲，手機，電腦，視頻游戲能幫助你快速靈活地思考，集中注意力，增強記憶。

Lawmakers are working against the clock, with a month-long recess scheduled to begin in a matter of days.

As in all its wars, Israel feels it is fighting against the clock.
ECONOMIST: Israel and Gaza
Imagine your standard cubicle inhabitants, tasked with hacking the future against the clock.
FORBES: Hack Your Way to a Better Future
Alas, JC Penney simply is in a race against the clock.
FORBES: Will JC Penney Shoppers Accompany The Retailer To The Finish Line?

If you do something against the clock, you do it as fast as possible and try to finish it before a certain time.
When people do something against the clock, the time they take to do it is recorded, in order to find which person or attempt is the fastest.