Telling time in Mandarin is essential for everyday life and relies on straightforward vocabulary and structures. This guide covers key expressions for hours, minutes, half and quarter times, and common phrases for asking and stating time.
Hours
Hours are told by stating the number followed by diǎn (点) for the hour. Mandarin uses the 12-hour clock in speech, with optional markers for morning, afternoon, etc.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一点 | yī diǎn | 1 o'clock | |
| 两点 | liǎng diǎn | 2 o'clock | |
| 三点 | sān diǎn | 3 o'clock | |
| 四点 | sì diǎn | 4 o'clock | |
| 五点 | wǔ diǎn | 5 o'clock | |
| 六点 | liù diǎn | 6 o'clock | |
| 七点 | qī diǎn | 7 o'clock | |
| 八点 | bā diǎn | 8 o'clock | |
| 九点 | jiǔ diǎn | 9 o'clock | |
| 十点 | shí diǎn | 10 o'clock | |
| 十一点 | shí yī diǎn | 11 o'clock | |
| 十二点 | shí èr diǎn | 12 o'clock |
It's three o'clock now.
| Hanzi Character(s) | Pinyin Word(s) | English Translation(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🕐 现在是一点。 | Xiànzài shì yī diǎn. | It is one o’clock now. | |
| 🕑 现在是两点。 | Xiànzài shì liǎng diǎn. | It is two o’clock now. | |
| 🕒 现在是三点。 | Xiànzài shì sān diǎn. | It is three o’clock now. | |
| 🕓 现在是四点。 | Xiànzài shì sì diǎn. | It is four o’clock now. | |
| 🕔 现在是五点。 | Xiànzài shì wǔ diǎn. | It is five o’clock now. | |
| 🕕 现在是六点。 | Xiànzài shì liù diǎn. | It is six o’clock now. | |
| 🕖 现在是七点。 | Xiànzài shì qī diǎn. | It is seven o’clock now. | |
| 🕗 现在是八点。 | Xiànzài shì bā diǎn. | It is eight o’clock now. | |
| 🕘 现在是九点。 | Xiànzài shì jiǔ diǎn. | It is nine o’clock now. | |
| 🕙 现在是十点。 | Xiànzài shì shí diǎn. | It is ten o’clock now. | |
| 🕚 现在是十一点。 | Xiànzài shì shíyī diǎn. | It is eleven o’clock now. | |
| 🕛 现在是十二点。 | Xiànzài shì shí’èr diǎn. | It is twelve o’clock now. |
Minutes
Minutes are told by stating the number followed by fēn (分). You say the hour then the minutes to give the exact time.
| Hanzi | Pinyin | English | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一分 | yī fēn | 1 minute | |
| 两分 | liǎng fēn | 2 minutes | |
| 三分 | sān fēn | 3 minutes | |
| 四分 | sì fēn | 4 minutes | |
| 五分 | wǔ fēn | 5 minutes | |
| 六分 | liù fēn | 6 minutes | |
| 七分 | qī fēn | 7 minutes | |
| 八分 | bā fēn | 8 minutes | |
| 九分 | jiǔ fēn | 9 minutes | |
| 十分 | shí fēn | 10 minutes | |
| 十一分 | shí yī fēn | 11 minutes | |
| 十二分 | shí èr fēn | 12 minutes | |
| 十三分 | shí sān fēn | 13 minutes | |
| 十四分 | shí sì fēn | 14 minutes | |
| 十五分 | shí wǔ fēn | 15 minutes | |
| 十六分 | shí liù fēn | 16 minutes | |
| 十七分 | shí qī fēn | 17 minutes | |
| 十八分 | shí bā fēn | 18 minutes | |
| 十九分 | shí jiǔ fēn | 19 minutes | |
| 二十分 | èr shí fēn | 20 minutes | |
| 二十一分 | èr shí yī fēn | 21 minutes | |
| 二十二分 | èr shí èr fēn | 22 minutes | |
| 二十三分 | èr shí sān fēn | 23 minutes | |
| 二十四分 | èr shí sì fēn | 24 minutes | |
| 二十五分 | èr shí wǔ fēn | 25 minutes | |
| 二十六分 | èr shí liù fēn | 26 minutes | |
| 二十七分 | èr shí qī fēn | 27 minutes | |
| 二十八分 | èr shí bā fēn | 28 minutes | |
| 二十九分 | èr shí jiǔ fēn | 29 minutes | |
| 三十分 | sān shí fēn | 30 minutes |
| Hanzi Character(s) | Pinyin Word(s) | English Translation(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🕐➕5分 现在是一点五分。 | Xiànzài shì yī diǎn wǔ fēn. | It is 1:05 now. | |
| 🕒➕10分 现在是三点十分。 | Xiànzài shì sān diǎn shí fēn. | It is 3:10 now. | |
| 🕓➕15分 现在是四点十五分。 | Xiànzài shì sì diǎn shíwǔ fēn. | It is 4:15 now. | |
| 🕕➕20分 现在是六点二十分。 | Xiànzài shì liù diǎn èrshí fēn. | It is 6:20 now. | |
| 🕗➕25分 现在是八点二十五分。 | Xiànzài shì bā diǎn èrshíwǔ fēn. | It is 8:25 now. | |
| ⏰ 半小时有三十分钟。 | Bàn xiǎoshí yǒu sānshí fēnzhōng. | Half an hour has thirty minutes. | |
| ⏳ 一刻钟有十五分钟。 | Yí kè zhōng yǒu shíwǔ fēnzhōng. | A quarter hour has fifteen minutes. |
Half and Quarter
Bàn (半) means half past the hour and appears after the hour. Quarters are expressed either as 15 minutes fēn or by saying 1/4 in Mandarin.
| English | Hanzi | Pinyin | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter past | 十五分 | shí wǔ fēn | |
| Quarter to | 四十五分 | sì shí wǔ fēn | |
| Half past | 半 | bàn |
| Hanzi Character(s) | Pinyin Word(s) | English Translation(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🕡 现在是三点半。 | Xiànzài shì sān diǎn bàn. | It is 3:30 now. | |
| 🕒➕15分 现在是两点一刻。 | Xiànzài shì liǎng diǎn yí kè. | It is 2:15 now. | |
| 🕔➖15分 现在是四点三刻。 | Xiànzài shì sì diǎn sān kè. | It is 4:45 now. | |
| 🕙➖15分 现在是十点一刻。 | Xiànzài shì shí diǎn yí kè. | It is 10:15 now. |
Asking Time
To ask time, use jǐ diǎn (几点) for the hour or jǐ diǎn jǐ fēn (几点几分) for the exact time. Polite questions add qǐng wèn (请问) at the start.
| Hanzi Character(s) | Pinyin Word(s) | English Translation(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🕵️♂️ 请问现在几点？ | Qǐngwèn xiànzài jǐ diǎn? | Excuse me, what time is it now? | |
| 🕰️ 你看一下钟好吗？ | Nǐ kàn yíxià zhōng hǎo ma? | Can you look at the clock? | |
| ⏱️ 现在时间到了吗？ | Xiànzài shíjiān dào le ma? | Is it time now? | |
| 📅 今天几点开始？ | Jīntiān jǐ diǎn kāishǐ? | What time does it start today? |
Time of Day
Time-of-day words like zǎoshang (早上) morning, zhōngwǔ (中午) noon, and wǎnshang (晚上) evening go before the time to specify when. These help clarify whether you mean AM or PM.
| English | Hanzi | Pinyin | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morning | 早上 | zǎoshang | |
| Noon | 中午 | zhōngwǔ | |
| Afternoon | 下午 | xiàwǔ | |
| Evening | 晚上 | wǎnshang |
| Hanzi Character(s) | Pinyin Word(s) | English Translation(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🌅 早上七点醒了。 | Zǎoshang qī diǎn xǐng le. | I woke up at 7 a.m. | |
| ☀️ 中午十二点吃饭。 | Zhōngwǔ shí’èr diǎn chīfàn. | I eat lunch at 12 noon. | |
| 🌇 下午三点喝茶。 | Xiàwǔ sān diǎn hē chá. | I have tea at 3 p.m. | |
| 🌙 晚上九点看书。 | Wǎnshang jiǔ diǎn kàn shū. | I read books at 9 p.m. | |
| 🛌 半夜十二点睡觉。 | Bànyè shí’èr diǎn shuìjiào. | I go to bed at midnight. |
Summary
Telling time in Mandarin follows a simple pattern: say the hour with diǎn, then minutes with fēn, use bàn for half past, and add time-of-day words for clarity. Practice with real times to get smooth at asking and telling time.
Last updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025