The Biblical (and Modern) Hebrew word for hour is שעה. It therefore makes sense that the makers of Modern Hebrew named that invention that allows us to tell time a שעון – a clock or a watch.
In context:
פעם לכולם היה שעון – היום סומכים על הטלפון.
Everyone used to have a watch – today (we) rely on our (the) phone.
To work around the clock is לעבוד מסביב לשעון, as in:
כדי להגיע להסכם מקובל על כולם המתווכים עבדו מסביב לשעון.
In order to arrive at an agreement acceptable to everyone, the mediators worked around the clock.
Note that it’s מסביב לשעון – literally, “FROM around TO the clock,” just like מסביב לשולחן – around the table, is literally “FROM around TO the table.”
