• To ask for and indicate the time, including hours, half hours, quarter hours, and minutes
• To ask and say when certain events are scheduled
• To talk about appointments and dates
• To use question expressions for time: Quelle heure and À quelle heure
• To respond to questions about time: Il est, À
• To learn about the French 24-hour clock system
;
Il est huit heures!
Pour communiquer
How to talk about the time:
Quelle heure est-il? What time is it? Il est … It’s …
→ Although o’clock may be left out in English, the expression heure(s) must be used in French when giving the time.
It’s ten. (It’s ten o’clock.) Il est dix heures.
→ To distinguish between A.M. and P.M., the French use the following expressions:
du matin in the morning Il est dix heures du matin. de l’après-midi in the afternoon Il est deux heures de l’après-midi. du soir in the evening Il est huit heures du soir.
NOTE DE PRONONCIATION: In telling time, the NUMBER and the word heure(s) are linked together. Remember, in French the letter “h” is always silent.
À quelle heure est …? At what time is …? —À quelle heure est le concert? At what time is the concert? —Le concert est à huit heures. The concert is at eight.
→ How to say that you have an appointment or a date:
J’ai un rendez-vous à … I have an appointment (a date) at … J’ai un rendez-vous à deux heures.
→ How to indicate the minutes:
Il est … dix heures six heures sept heures deux heures
dix vingt-cinq trente-cinq cinquante-deux
→ How to indicate the half hour and the quarter hours:
et quart et demie moins le quart
Il est une heure Il est deux heures Il est trois heures