Tell the Time
Numbers
3:00 a.m. / p.m. – It is three.
10:05 – It’s ten o-five.
17:40 – It’s five forty.
O’clock*
3:00 a.m. / p.m. – The time is three o’clock.
2:00 p.m. – “I have a dentist appointment at 2 o’clock.”
*The phrase “o’clock” comes from the meaning ‘of the clock’ and is used when you are referencing time on the hour. It works for every hour on the clock, am and pm, but cannot be used when including minutes.
In the Morning / Afternoon / Evening
Morning (from 12:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)
6:00 a.m. — It is six in the morning.
Afternoon (from 12:00 p.m. to sunset / 6pm)
3:00 p.m. — It is three in the afternoon.
Evening (from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.)
6:00 p.m. — It is six in the evening.
Night (from 6:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m.)
Use a.m. and p.m.*
“I think I overslept, what time is it now?”
“It’s 12:30.”
“12:30 a.m. or p.m.?”
“12:30 p.m.”
*These words are abbreviations for the Latin terms “ante meridiem” and “post meridiem,” which mean before midday and after midday.
To / Past Hour – Minutes First
4:35 – It’s twenty-five to/until/till five
3:20 – It’s twenty past/after three
19:18 – It’s eighteen past/after seven
Half an Hour*
“How much longer until 6?”
“About half an hour.”
*It does not have to be exactly 00:30 for you to use the term half an hour, you can use it for times between 25 and 35 minutes.
Quarter of an Hour*
7:45 – “a quarter to/until/till eight”
8:15 – “a quarter past/after eight.”
“How much longer until 6?”
“About a quarter of an hour“
“What time is it right now?”
“A quarter to/until/till nine.”
*You can still say “quarter” if the number of minutes you have is between 12 and 17.
“For many students, their native countries operate a 24-hour clock, whereas in the UK we use a 12-hour clock, and use the numbers from 1-12.”
Minor differences: in the USA, Americans refer to the exact time rather than splitting it into halves and quarters. For example, in American English people will say “four thirty,” whereas in the UK people will say “it’s half past four.”
Asking for the time
The most common ways of asking for the time are:
What time is it?
What is the time?
Could you tell me the time please?
Do you have the time?
What time are we meeting?
Reference: https://www.kaplaninternational.com/blog/talk-about-time-in-english