TELLING THE TIME

TELLING THE TIME

Typical questions:

• What time is it? • What time do you have? • Do you know the time? • Do you know what time it is? • What time does ------- start/finish/? • What time do you….. (do something— wake up, go to sleep, etc.) • When is the movie/class/concert/etc.?

Native English speakers prefer to use the 12- hour system, not the 24-hour one.

So, we use other references to specify the correct time/part of the day:

A.M. – From Latin: Ante Meridiem = Before Noon, that is, from midnight to noon/midday.

P.M. – From Latin: Post Meridiem = After Noon, that is, from noon/midday to midnight.

Or we simply mention the part of the day: in the morning / in the afternoon / in the evening.

Examples: It’s 3:45 p.m. now. / It’s 3:45 in the afternoon now.

I wake up at 6:30 in the morning. / I wake up at 6:30 a.m.

The movie starts at 8:00 p.m. / The movie starts at 8 o’clock in the evening.

ATTENTION                                                                                                                                                                                    

We can’t say “o’clock a.m./p.m.”. They never go together! There are two possibilities to tell time by the hour: Example: 3:00 - It’s three p.m. - It’s three o’clock in the afternoon

And… How to say the numbers?

 The Americans prefer the “direct” way (hours, then minutes):

 5:30 = five thirty

 7:15 = seven fifteen

2:45 = two forty-five

The British prefer to use fractions and the “reverse” way (minutes, then hours):

2:15 -> a quarter past two

11:30 -> half past eleven

9:45 -> a quarter to/till ten

3:20 ->  twenty past three

12:50 -> ten to/till one