Telling time in French with vocabulary for hours, minutes, fractions, and common expressions. Plus, key grammar for using “il est” and prepositions.
Telling time is a fundamental skill in any language. In French, it involves specific vocabulary for hours, minutes, and fractions, as well as common expressions like “half past” and “quarter to.” Understanding these building blocks will help you confidently talk about time in everyday situations.
The French word for “hour” is heure (feminine). To say “o’clock,” you use heure in the singular form for 1:00 — une heure — and plural heures for all other times. Numbers up to 12 are used for telling time (e.g., trois heures = 3:00).
The basic structure is:
Il est + [number] + heure(s)
French Example: Il est trois heures.\
English Example: It is three o’clock.
How do you say 'It is three o'clock' in French?
Il est trois heures.
The correct structure is 'Il est + [number] + heure(s)'. 'Heures' is plural for all times except 1:00. 'Il' is the impersonal subject for telling time.
To add minutes past the hour, simply say the number of minutes after the hour. Use et (and) before the minutes.
Il est + [hour] + heures + et + [minutes]
French Example: Il est deux heures et dix.\
English Example: It is 2:10.
For minutes 1-9, the singular form of the number is used without a "0" (e.g., 2:05 is deux heures cinq).
French has special expressions for 15 and 30 minutes past the hour:
et quart = and a quarter (15 minutes)
et demie = and a half (30 minutes)
These replace saying the exact number of minutes.
Examples:
Il est trois heures et quart.\
Il est cinq heures et demie.\
(It’s 3:15. / It’s 5:30.)
For times 45 minutes past the hour, French uses moins le quart (a quarter to) and counts backwards to the next hour.
Structure:
Il est + [next hour] + heures + moins le quart
Example:
Il est six heures moins le quart.\
(It’s 5:45.)
For 46-59 minutes, use moins plus the number of remaining minutes before the next hour:
Il est + [next hour] + heures + moins + [minutes]
Example:
Il est sept heures moins dix.\
(It’s 6:50.)
Two special numbers appear in time-telling:
midi (noon, 12:00)
minuit (midnight, 00:00)
Use these instead of “douze heures” when referring to 12:00 exactly.
Examples:
Il est midi.\
Il est minuit.\
(It’s noon. / It’s midnight.)
French typically uses the 24-hour clock in writing and formal speech (especially for schedules). However, in conversation, the 12-hour clock is common, and du matin (in the morning), de l’après-midi (in the afternoon), and du soir (in the evening) are added for clarity.
Examples:
Il est deux heures du matin.\
Il est trois heures de l’après-midi.\
Il est dix heures du soir.\
(It’s 2 AM. / It’s 3 PM. / It’s 10 PM.)
Here are some useful phrases that appear in daily conversation about time:
à l’heure = on time
en avance = early
en retard = late
tout de suite = right away
bientôt = soon
Examples:
Je suis en retard. (= I’m late.)
Le train est à l’heure. (= The train is on time.)
Je reviens tout de suite. (= I’ll be right back.)
French time-telling relies on a few simple rules:
Use il est [hour] heure(s) for the basic time.
Add minutes with et [minutes] or use special terms for quarters and halves.
For times after 30, count backward with moins.
Use midi and minuit for 12:00 exactly.
Add du matin / de l’après-midi / du soir to clarify when using the 12-hour clock.
Common expressions like en retard and à l’heure are essential for everyday life.
With this foundation, you can confidently tell and ask about the time in French!
How do you refer to 12:00 PM and 12:00 AM in French?
Use 'midi' for 12:00 PM and 'minuit' for 12:00 AM.
'Midi' means noon (12:00 PM) and 'minuit' means midnight (12:00 AM) in French.
How do you express times after 30 minutes in French?
Count backward using 'moins' before the next hour.
For 31-59 minutes, French counts backward: 'Il est [next hour] heures moins [minutes]'.
How do you clarify AM and PM when using the 12-hour clock in French conversation?
Add 'du matin' for AM, 'de l’après-midi' for PM, and 'du soir' for evening.
French adds 'du matin', 'de l’après-midi', or 'du soir' to clarify time of day in 12-hour formats.
