Telling the time: Spoken English: Zero to Fluent (Beginner)

There are two easy ways to say the time. The digital way reads the numbers: 7:30 is "seven thirty". The clock way uses words like "half past" and "quarter to". Both are correct; the digital way is easiest for beginners.

Time	Digital way	Clock way
7:00	seven o'clock	seven o'clock
7:15	seven fifteen	quarter past seven
7:30	seven thirty	half past seven
7:45	seven forty-five	quarter to eight
7:10	seven ten	ten past seven
7:50	seven fifty	ten to eight

Think of it like this: Think of the clock as a cricket ground cut in half. The right side is "past" (time going away from the hour). The left side is "to" (time coming towards the next hour).

What time is it?

Say it: wot TYM iz it?

कितने बजे हैं?

Excuse me, do you have the time?

Say it: ek-SKYOOZ mee, doo yoo hav the TYM?

माफ़ कीजिए, क्या आप समय बता सकते हैं?

Polite question to a stranger. "Do you have time?" (without "the") means "Are you free?"

It's six o'clock.

Say it: its SIKS o-KLOK

छह बजे हैं।

Use "o'clock" only for exact hours.

It's half past nine.

Say it: its HAAF paast NYN

साढ़े नौ बजे हैं।

It's quarter to four.

Say it: its KWOR-ter to FOR

पौने चार बजे हैं।

It's quarter past two.

Say it: its KWOR-ter paast TOO

सवा दो बजे हैं।

The train leaves at 6:45 pm.

Say it: the TRAYN leevz at SIKS FOR-tee-FYV pee-EM

ट्रेन शाम 6:45 बजे निकलती है।

Use "at" with a clock time.

Word	Meaning
am	midnight to 12 noon (morning)
pm	12 noon to midnight (afternoon, evening, night)
noon / midday	12:00 in the day
midnight	12:00 at night

Careful: Do not say "It is 6 o'clock pm in the evening". Choose one: "6 pm" or "6 in the evening".

Careful: "Sharp" means exactly: "Come at ten sharp." In India people also say "ten o'clock sharp". Both are fine.

Tip: Every time you look at your phone this week, say the time aloud in English: "It is four twenty."

Telling the time

Explanation

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In real life: Asking the time at a bus stop

Practice (0/4 done)

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