Telling Time

In the U.S., time is usually told on the 12, rather than 24-hour clock. Distinctions between morning, afternoon, and evening are made by adding a.m. or p.m. 2 p.m. is therefore two o'clock in the afternoon; 6 a.m. is six o'clock in the morning.

HERE ARE SOME USEFUL EXPRESSIONS RELATED TO TIME:


–What time is it? - It's 11 p.m.
–Do you have the time? - Yes, it's 12 noon.
–What time should I arrive? - Around 3 p.m.
–How much time will it take? -No more than 20 minutes.


When referring to 12:00 at night, you can say midnight. When referring to 12:00 during the day, you can say noon.


Here are some examples of how to express time in English, using quarter-hour and half-hour expressions:


–If it's 10:15 you could say either
It's quarter past (after) ten.
OR: It's ten fifteen.

–If it's 5:30, you could say either
It's half past five.
OR: It's five thirty.


–If it's 8:45, you could say either
It's quarter till nine.
OR: It's eight forty-five.


For all other times, simply list the hour first, then the number of minutes:


It's 3:25 = It's three twenty-five.

It's 10:35 = It's ten thirty-five
OR: It's twenty-five till eleven.