French 2 / Unit 1: Review and Daily Routine
1.4 Telling Time
Notes
Use Il est + hour + heure(s) to tell time. The 24-hour clock is common for schedules.
- 3:00 = Il est trois heures. 1:00 = Il est une heure. Noon = midi; midnight = minuit.
- :15 = et quart; :30 = et demie; :45 = moins le quart. Example: Il est six heures et quart. Il est huit heures moins le quart.
- Minutes after: Il est quatre heures dix. Minutes before: Il est cinq heures moins vingt.
- To ask: Quelle heure est-il? To ask when: À quelle heure...? Answer: À sept heures.
- Add du matin, de l'après-midi, du soir for a.m./p.m. 8:00 p.m. = huit heures du soir, or 20 h on the 24-hour clock.
Practice
How do you say 7:45 in everyday French?
7:45 is a quarter to eight: huit heures moins le quart.
What time is "Il est midi et demi"?
Midi is noon and et demi means half past.
You want to ask a friend when the film starts. What do you say?
À quelle heure asks at what time something happens; Quelle heure est-il? asks the current time.
Ready for more? Take the Unit 1 test.