Time is a difficult thing to define under the best of circumstances. Whether you’re talking about time’s impact in physics, history, literature or engineering, the concept can be nebulous and difficult to explain. At one point it’s a firm matter, with a concrete definition that’s easy to measure and understand. A moment later it’s harder to grasp, less defined, more ephemeral. Time is no different in chess.

A single unit of time in chess is commonly called a tempo. The plural is tempi. Most of the time you play without feeling the presence of tempi. They exist, but they aren’t of great importance.
One side moves, then the other. There’s really no more to it than that. But at other times, the

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