Telling the Time in English
Do more with this exercise
Learn how to ask and say the time in English. Read each time and its example, then do the exercises. There are two ways to say a time: half past seven or seven thirty. Both are correct.
Asking the time
What time is it?a question: you want to know the time now
Excuse me, what time is it?
What's the time?the same question
What's the time, please?
what timea question about the time of an action
What time does the class start?
O'clock, past and to
o'clock
It's seven o'clock.
five past
It's five past seven.
ten past
The bus comes at ten past seven.
a quarter past
I get up at a quarter past seven.
twenty past
It's twenty past seven.
twenty-five past
It's twenty-five past seven.
half past
Breakfast is at half past seven.
twenty-five to
It's twenty-five to eight.
twenty to
My train is at twenty to eight.
a quarter to
It's a quarter to eight.
ten to
School starts at ten to eight.
five to
It's five to eight. We're late!
Digital times
seven thirty
I get up at seven thirty.
eight fifteen
The class starts at eight fifteen.
nine oh five
The train is at nine oh five.
ten forty-five
We have a break at ten forty-five.
eleven twenty
It's eleven twenty.
a.m., p.m., midday and midnight
a.m.before midday
I get up at 6 a.m. every day.
p.m.after midday
The shop closes at 8 p.m. on Saturdays.
midday
We have lunch at midday.
noon
The class finishes at noon.
midnight
My brother goes to bed at midnight.
At seven, in the morning
at seven o'clockat + a time
Dinner is at seven o'clock.
in the morning
I have a shower in the morning.
in the afternoon
She plays tennis in the afternoon.
in the evening
We watch TV in the evening.
at night
I read a book at night.
Practice exercises
Match the Times
Match each time with the clock.
Choose a word on the left, then its match on the right.
Choose the Correct Time
Choose the correct words for each sentence.
7.It's 4:15. It's ___.
8.It's 6:30. It's ___ six.
9.It's 9:50. It's ten ___ ten.
10.The class starts ___ eight o'clock.
11.___ time is it?
12.I go to bed at 11 ___ and I get up at 7 a.m.
13.12:00 at night is ___.
Fill in the Blank
Type the missing word or words.
True or False
Decide if each sentence is true or false.
21.6:45 is 'a quarter to seven'.
22.'Half past five' is 6:30.
23.3 p.m. is in the afternoon.
How to tell the time in English
To ask the time, say What time is it? or What's the time? The answer always starts with It's: It's one o'clock. It's ten o'clock. We use it's for every time, with one hour or with many hours.
For a full hour, say o'clock: It's nine o'clock. For other times, say the minutes, then past or to, then the hour. Use past after the hour: ten past nine is 9:10. Use to before the next hour: twenty to ten is 9:40. For 15 minutes, say a quarter, and for 30 minutes, say half past: a quarter past nine, half past nine, a quarter to ten.
There is also a digital way: say the hour, then the minutes. 9:10 is nine ten, and 9:40 is nine forty. For 1 to 9 minutes, say oh before the number: 9:05 is nine oh five. People use both ways every day.
English speakers usually use the 12-hour clock. Add a.m. for the time before midday and p.m. for the time after midday: 7 a.m., 7 p.m. Or say in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening or at night: eleven o'clock at night. Use at with a time: The class starts at eight.
Frequently asked questions
How do you ask the time in English?
Say What time is it? or What's the time? To be polite, start with Excuse me. The answer starts with It's: It's six o'clock. It's half past two.
When do I use past and when do I use to?
Use past for the first 30 minutes after the hour: ten past six is 6:10. Use to for the minutes before the next hour: ten to seven is 6:50.
Is it quarter past or a quarter past?
Both are correct: a quarter past seven and quarter past seven. In American English, people also say a quarter after seven and a quarter of seven, but past and to are correct everywhere.
What do a.m. and p.m. mean?
a.m. is from midnight to midday, and p.m. is from midday to midnight. Use them with numbers: 7 a.m., 9 p.m. Do not use them with o'clock: say seven o'clock in the morning, or 7 a.m.
Is seven thirty the same as half past seven?
Yes. Seven thirty is the digital way, and half past seven is the clock way. Both are correct and very common.
Do English speakers use the 24-hour clock?
Not much when they speak. People usually say 3 p.m. or three o'clock, not fifteen hundred. You see the 24-hour clock on some tickets and phones.
Answer key
1. half past eight
Answer: 8:30
Half past eight is 30 minutes after eight: 8:30.
2. a quarter to four
Answer: 3:45
A quarter to four is 15 minutes before four: 3:45.
3. ten past two
Answer: 2:10
Ten past two is 10 minutes after two: 2:10.
4. twenty-five to six
Answer: 5:35
Twenty-five to six is 25 minutes before six: 5:35.
5. five o'clock
Answer: 5:00
O'clock means 0 minutes: five o'clock is 5:00.
6. nine forty
Answer: 9:40
Nine forty is the digital way to say 9:40. You can also say twenty to ten.
7. It's 4:15. It's ___.
Answer: a quarter past four
15 minutes after the hour is a quarter past. 4:15 is a quarter past four.
8. It's 6:30. It's ___ six.
Answer: half past
30 minutes after the hour is half past. We never say half to.
9. It's 9:50. It's ten ___ ten.
Answer: to
9:50 is 10 minutes before ten, so we use to: ten to ten.
10. The class starts ___ eight o'clock.
Answer: at
Use at with a time: at eight o'clock, at half past six.
11. ___ time is it?
Answer: What
The question is What time is it? We use what with time.
12. I go to bed at 11 ___ and I get up at 7 a.m.
Answer: p.m.
Bedtime is at night, after midday, so it is p.m. 11 a.m. is in the morning.
13. 12:00 at night is ___.
Answer: midnight
12:00 at night is midnight. Midday and noon are 12:00 in the day.
14. It's 3:00. It's three ___.
Answer: o'clock
For a full hour, with 0 minutes, we say o'clock: three o'clock.
15. It's 7:15. It's ___ past seven.
Answer: a quarter
15 minutes is a quarter of an hour. You can say a quarter past seven or quarter past seven.
16. It's 10:40. It's ___ to eleven.
Answer: twenty
10:40 is 20 minutes before eleven: twenty to eleven.
17. It's 5:25. It's ___ past five.
Answer: twenty-five
5:25 is 25 minutes after five: twenty-five past five.
18. ___ do you get up? At half past six.
Answer: What time
The answer is a time, so the question starts with What time (or When).
19. It's 8:30. It's half past eight, or eight ___.
Answer: thirty
In the digital way, we say the hour and then the minutes: eight thirty.
20. Lunch is ___ one o'clock.
Answer: at
Use at with a time: at one o'clock.
21. 6:45 is 'a quarter to seven'.
Answer: True
6:45 is 15 minutes before seven, so it is a quarter to seven.
22. 'Half past five' is 6:30.
Answer: False
Half past five is 30 minutes after five: 5:30, not 6:30.
23. 3 p.m. is in the afternoon.
Answer: True
p.m. means after midday, so 3 p.m. is in the afternoon.