Open - and finished on time (5)
I believe the answer is:
overt
'open' is the definition.
(associated in meaning)
'finished on time' is the wordplay.
'finished' becomes 'over' (over can mean finished or ended).
'on' says to put letters next to each other (in a down clue, letters appear on others).
'time' becomes 't' (abbreviation).
'over'+'t'='OVERT'
'and' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for overt that I've seen before include "Conspicuous" , "Plain to see - manifest" , "Obvious, patent" , "____ is able to be seen" , "totally visible" .)