Quelle heure est-il ? (Time & Schedule)
Tell the time, talk about your schedule, and use key question words quand and à quelle heure.
TELLING THE TIME: two systems: conversational and official (24-hour)
CONVERSATIONAL (12-hour): Il est + cardinal number + heure(s) + minutes. IL EST always starts the sentence: you cannot say 'C'est deux heures'
HALF PAST: et demie (half past) (feminine, because heure is feminine): Il est deux heures et demie (it is 2:30). BUT: midi et demi (half past twelve) · minuit et demi (half past midnight) (masculine, no E).
QUARTER TO: moins le quart (quarter to): Il est quatre heures moins le quart (it is 3:45) (3:45).
QUARTER PAST: et quart (quarter past): Il est trois heures et quart (it is 3:15).
ASKING: Quelle heure est-il (what time is it) ? (What time is it?) Il est quelle heure (what time is it) ? (casual) Tu as l'heure (do you have the time) ? (Have you got the time?: very common informal)
- Il est sept heures du matin. — It is 7 AM. (liaison t)
- Il est neuf heures et quart. — It is 9:15. (neuf's f voices to /v/ before heures)
- Il est midi et demi. — It is 12:30 PM.
- Il est huit heures moins le quart (du soir). — It is 7:45 PM (quarter to 8).
- Le train part à 14h32. — The train leaves at 14:32 (official time).
TIME PREPOSITIONS: each one has a precise meaning
À = at a specific clock time: Le film commence à vingt heures (the film starts at 8 pm). J'ai rendez-vous à midi (I have an appointment at noon). Le train part à dix-sept heures trente (the train leaves at 5:30 pm).
DE ... À = from ... to (time range): Je travaille de neuf heures à dix-huit heures (I work from 9 am to 6 pm). Le magasin est ouvert de 9h à 20h (the shop is open from 9 am to 8 pm).
PENDANT (during) = during / for (a stretch of time, general or habitual statement): Je travaille pendant huit heures chaque jour (I work for eight hours every day). Les enfants dorment pendant deux heures l'après-midi (the children sleep for two hours in the afternoon).
DEPUIS (since/for) = since / for (ongoing duration, action STILL continuing): J'habite ici depuis cinq ans (I have lived here for five years) (I have been living here for 5 years and still am). Always used with PRESENT tense for ongoing situations.
DANS (in) = in (future duration from now): Le cours commence dans dix minutes (the class starts in ten minutes). On se voit dans une heure (we'll meet in an hour).
KEY CONTRAST: PENDANT vs DEPUIS: Je travaille pendant huit heures (I work for eight hours) (a stretch of time, complete in itself: how long the activity lasts each time). Je travaille ici depuis huit heures (I have worked here for eight years) (started in the past, still true now: how long since it began). Both stay in the present tense at this level; you'll meet the past-tense versions of these ideas in a later unit.
- Je travaille de 9h à 17h. — I work from 9 to 5.
- Le cours dure deux heures. — The class lasts two hours.
- J'étudie le français depuis six mois. — I have been studying French for six months (and still am).
- Le film commence dans vingt minutes. — The film starts in twenty minutes.
DE... À... : expressing time spans, schedules, and ranges
STRUCTURE: DE + start point + À + end point: Le magasin est ouvert de 9h à 19h (the shop is open from 9 am to 7 pm). Je travaille de lundi à vendredi (I work from Monday to Friday)
- Il travaille de 8h à 17h. — He works from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Le cours est de 9h à 11h. — The class is from 9 to 11.
- Le musée est ouvert de 10h à 18h. — The museum is open from 10 to 6.
- Je suis libre de midi à 14h. — I'm free from noon to 2 p.m.
- De lundi à vendredi, je travaille. — From Monday to Friday, I work.