3.1. Quelle heure est-il ?

Asking and Telling Time

3.1.1. The Main Idea

In French, the main question for asking the time is:

Quelle heure est-il ?	What time is it?
Il est une heure.	It is one o’clock.
Il est deux heures.	It is two o’clock.

French uses il est to tell time.

3.1.2. Asking the Time

Quelle heure est-il ?	What time is it?
Il est quelle heure ?	What time is it? more casual
Tu as l’heure ?	Do you have the time? informal
Vous avez l’heure ?	Do you have the time? formal or plural

3.1.3. Telling the Hour

Il est une heure.	It is one o’clock.
Il est deux heures.	It is two o’clock.
Il est trois heures.	It is three o’clock.
Il est quatre heures.	It is four o’clock.
Il est cinq heures.	It is five o’clock.
Il est six heures.	It is six o’clock.
Il est sept heures.	It is seven o’clock.
Il est huit heures.	It is eight o’clock.
Il est neuf heures.	It is nine o’clock.
Il est dix heures.	It is ten o’clock.
Il est onze heures.	It is eleven o’clock.
Il est midi.	It is noon.
Il est minuit.	It is midnight.

3.1.4. Important Note: Une heure

For one o’clock, French uses une heure, not un heure, because heure is feminine.

une heure	one o’clock
deux heures	two o’clock
trois heures	three o’clock

3.1.5. Minutes After the Hour

Il est une heure cinq.	It is 1:05.
Il est deux heures dix.	It is 2:10.
Il est trois heures quinze.	It is 3:15.
Il est quatre heures vingt.	It is 4:20.
Il est cinq heures vingt-cinq.	It is 5:25.
Il est six heures trente.	It is 6:30.

3.1.6. Quarter and Half

Il est trois heures et quart.	It is quarter past three.
Il est quatre heures et demie.	It is half past four.
Il est midi et quart.	It is quarter past noon.
Il est minuit et demi.	It is half past midnight.

Use et quart for quarter past. Use et demie after an hour, but et demi after midi and minuit.

3.1.7. Minutes Before the Hour

For minutes before the next hour, French often uses moins.

Il est trois heures moins cinq.	It is 2:55. literally, three o’clock minus five
Il est quatre heures moins dix.	It is 3:50.
Il est cinq heures moins le quart.	It is quarter to five.
Il est six heures moins vingt.	It is 5:40.

3.1.8. 24-Hour Time

French often uses the 24-hour clock, especially for schedules, school, travel, and official times.

Il est treize heures.	It is 13:00 / 1:00 p.m.
Il est quatorze heures trente.	It is 14:30 / 2:30 p.m.
Il est quinze heures quarante-cinq.	It is 15:45 / 3:45 p.m.
Il est vingt heures.	It is 20:00 / 8:00 p.m.

In the 24-hour system, usually say the hour and the minutes directly.

3.1.9. A.M. and P.M.

French does not usually rely on a.m. and p.m. the same way English does. You can use time expressions to clarify.

du matin	in the morning / a.m.
de l’après-midi	in the afternoon / p.m.
du soir	in the evening / p.m.

Il est huit heures du matin.	It is eight in the morning.
Il est deux heures de l’après-midi.	It is two in the afternoon.
Il est huit heures du soir.	It is eight in the evening.

3.1.10. Core Patterns

Quelle heure est-il ?	What time is it?
Il est ___ heure(s).	It is ___ o’clock.
Il est ___ heure(s) ___ .	It is : .
Il est ___ heure(s) et quart.	It is quarter past ___ .
Il est ___ heure(s) et demie.	It is half past ___ .
Il est ___ heure(s) moins ___ .	It is ___ minutes to ___ .

3.1.11. Practice

What time is it? |

It is one o’clock. |

It is two o’clock. |

It is 3:15. |

It is 4:30. |

It is 2:55. |

It is quarter to five. |

It is 8:00 in the morning. |

It is 8:00 in the evening. |

3.1.12. Answers

What time is it?	Quelle heure est-il ?
It is one o’clock.	Il est une heure.
It is two o’clock.	Il est deux heures.
It is 3:15.	Il est trois heures quinze. / Il est trois heures et quart.
It is 4:30.	Il est quatre heures trente. / Il est quatre heures et demie.
It is 2:55.	Il est trois heures moins cinq.
It is quarter to five.	Il est cinq heures moins le quart.
It is 8:00 in the morning.	Il est huit heures du matin.
It is 8:00 in the evening.	Il est huit heures du soir.

3.1.13. Short Dialogue

A : Tu as l’heure ?	A: Do you have the time?
B : Oui, il est deux heures trente.	B: Yes, it is 2:30.
A : Merci !	A: Thank you!
B : De rien.	B: You’re welcome.

3.1.14. Checkpoint

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to ask what time it is, tell the hour, use minutes after and before the hour, recognize et quart, et demie, and moins, and understand basic 24-hour time in French.