Telling Time
Asking about the time is a commonly asked question. To ask for the time, you say:
¿Qué hora es?
What time is it?
Literally, this means "What hour is it?"
When answering, the word "hora" is dropped but it still affects the conjugation of "ser"
¿Qué hora es?
What time is it?
Literally, this means "What hour is it?"
When answering, the word "hora" is dropped but it still affects the conjugation of "ser"
The verb ser is used to express the time of day.
Use es when referring to "one o'clock" and use son when referring to all other hours.
Examples
- Es la una...............................................................It's 1:00
- Son las dos...........................................................It's 2:00
"La" or "Las" are used before "hora", or hour, because it is feminine.
Examples
- Es la una...............................................................It's 1:00
- Son las dos...........................................................It's 2:00
Minutes are literally added to the hour, like 1 and 5 minutes for 1:05, with the letter "y" for "and"
Examples
- Es la una y cinco................................................. It’s five minutes past one.
- Son las tres y doce.............................................. It’s twelve minutes past three.
Minutes can be subtracted from the hour using the word "menos", or "less"
Examples
- Es la una menos cinco......................................... It’s five minutes till one.
- Son las tres menos doce...................................... It’s twelve minutes till three.
You can also use the words "media" for "half" and "cuarto" for "quarter". Make sure you don't mix "cuarto" with "cuatro", or 4
Examples
- Es la una y media................................................ It’s half past one.
- Son las dos y cuarto............................................ It’s quarter past two.
- Son las tres menos cuarto................................... It’s quarter till three.
To show the difference between A.M. and P.M., use "de la mañana", "de la tarde", and "de la noche"
Examples
- Son las dos de la tarde........................................ It’s two in the afternoon.
- Son las dos de la mañana. .................................. It’s two in the morning. .
- Son las diez de la noche...................................... It’s ten in the evening.
Useful Words To Know
- tiempo............................................time
- hora............................................hour
- y............................................and
- menos............................................minus
- cuarto............................................quarter
- media............................................half
Useful Phrases To Know
- por la mañana.................................................... in the morning (no specific time) .
- de la mañana...................................................... in the morning (specific time)
- por la tarde......................................................... in the afternoon (no specific time)
- de la tarde.......................................................... in the afternoon (specific time)
- por la noche....................................................... in the evening or night (no specific time)
- de la noche......................................................... in the evening or night (specific time)
- la mañana. ......................................................... morning .
- el mañana. ......................................................... morrow, future .
- mañana por la mañana....................................... tomorrow morning
- a tiempo......................................................on time
- en punto...................................................... on the dot
- a + la(s) + time......................................occurs at [time]
WorkSheet To Print
| tellingtime.pdf |
