How To Tell the Time in French

In this lesson we learn expressions for telling the time.

Watch the video as many times as you need, until you feel you can give the French translations as the video plays!

Now we can see what we’ve learned. Look at the English and see if you can provide the French for these phrases:

Part 1:

What is the time?	Show Quelle heure est-il?
It is one o’clock.	Show Il est une heure.
It is two o’clock.	Show Il est deux heures.
It is ten past two.	Show Il est deux heures dix.
It is a quarter past two.	Show Il est deux heures et quart.

Part 2:

It is half past two.	Show Il est deux heures et demie.
It is twenty to three.	Show Il est trois heures moins vingt.
It is quarter to three.	Show Il est trois heures moins le quart.
It is midday.	Show Il est midi.
It is midnight.	Show Il est minuit.

Notes on Usage

Quelle heure est-il?
What time is it?

Il est… It is…

une heure one deux heures two trois heures three quatre heures four

cinq / dix / vingt five / ten/ twenty et quart fifteen (i.e. quarter past) et demie thirty (i.e. half past) moins le quart minus fifteen (i.e. quarter to)

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