Asking for the time
| French Vocabulary · Time · audio612 kb Asking For The Day, Date, Time Demander le jour/la date/le temps | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Asking for the time. | |||
| 4a | Quelle heure est-il ? | What hour/time is it? | kell er ayteel |
| 4b | Quelle heure il est ? | kell er eel ay | |
| 5 | Il est [nombre] heure(s). | It is [number] hours. | eelay [nombre] er |
Time
In French, "il est" is used to express the time; though it would literally translate as "he is", it is actually, in this case, equivalent to "it is" (impersonal "il"). Unlike in English, it is always important to use "heures" ("hours") when referring to the time. In English, it is OK to say, "It's nine," but this wouldn't make sense in French.
| French Vocabulary · Time · audio145 kb Time Le temps | |
|---|---|
| Quelle heure est-il ? | What time is it? |
| Il est une heure. | It is one o'clock. |
| Il est trois heures. | It is three o'clock. |
| Il est dix heures. | It is ten o'clock. |
| Il est midi. | It is noon. |
| Il est minuit. | It is midnight. |
| Il est quatre heures cinq. | It is five past four. |
| Il est quatre heures et quart. | It is a quarter past four. |
| Il est quatre heures moins le quart | It is a quarter till 4. |
| Il est quatre heures quinze. | It is four fifteen. |
| Il est quatre heures et demie. | It is half past four. |
| Il est quatre heures trente. | It is four thirty. |
| Il est cinq heures moins vingt. | It is twenty to five. |
| Il est quatre heures quarante. | It is four forty. |
Times of Day
| French Vocabulary · Time · audio618 kb Times of Day L'heure relatif | |
|---|---|
| le lever du jour | daybreak lit:the rise of the day |
| le lever du soleil | sunrise lit: the rise of the sun |
| le soleil levant | rising sun. |
| le matin | morning |
| ...du matin | A.M., lit: of the morning |
| hier matin | yesterday morning |
| le midi | noon, midday |
| l'après-midi (m) | afternoon |
| le soir | evening, in the evening |
| ...du soir | P.M. lit: of the evening |
| la nuit | night |
| le coucher du soleil | sunset |
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