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How Do You Tell Time in Japanese?

Learning to tell time in Japanese is an important skill for anyone starting to learn the language. Just like in English, we use numbers and certain words to show what time it is. Let’s look at how to tell time in Japanese with some easy examples.

Basic Words for Telling Time

Before we start, it’s important to know some basic words:

  • 時 (じ, ji): hour
  • 分 (ふん, fun): minute
  • 秒 (びょう, byō): second
  • 午前 (ごぜん, gozen): AM (morning)
  • 午後 (ごご, gogo): PM (afternoon/evening)

How to Say the Time

Telling time in Japanese is pretty simple. The format is:

[hour]+(ji)+[minute]+(fun)[hour] + 時 (ji) + [minute] + 分 (fun)

Examples:

  1. 1:00 - 一時 (いちじ, ichiji)
  2. 2:30 - 二時三十分 (にじさんじゅっぷん, nijisanjuppun)
  3. 3:15 - 三時十五分 (さんじじゅうごふん, sanjijūgofun)
  4. 4:45 - 四時四十五分 (よじよんじゅうごふん, yojiyonjūgofun)

You can see that we add the minutes after the hour. For example, “3:15” means “three o’clock and fifteen minutes.”

Saying AM and PM

Now, let’s talk about how to say if it’s morning or afternoon. Here’s what you do:

  • For morning times, you put 午前 (gozen) before the hour.

    • 8:00 AM - 午前八時 (ごぜんはちじ, gozenhachiji)
  • For afternoon times, you add 午後 (gogo).

    • 3:00 PM - 午後三時 (ごごさんじ, gogosanji)

Full Sentences

If you want to say a complete sentence when telling the time, you can use the word です (desu), which means “is.”

For example:

  • It is 5:30 AM. - 午前五時三十分です (ごぜんごじさんじゅっぷんです, gozengojisanjuppun desu).

Using this structure is a great way to express the time fully.

Days of the Week and Months

Besides telling time, it’s also good to know how to talk about days of the week and months.

Days of the Week

  • 月曜日 (げつようび, getsuyōbi): Monday
  • 火曜日 (かようび, kayōbi): Tuesday
  • 水曜日 (すいようび, suiyōbi): Wednesday
  • 木曜日 (もくようび, mokuyōbi): Thursday
  • 金曜日 (きんようび, kin'yōbi): Friday
  • 土曜日 (どようび, doyōbi): Saturday
  • 日曜日 (にちようび, nichiyōbi): Sunday

Months of the Year

  • 一月 (いちがつ, ichigatsu): January
  • 二月 (にがつ, nigatsu): February
  • 三月 (さんがつ, sangatsu): March
  • 四月 (しがつ, shigatsu): April
  • 五月 (ごがつ, gogatsu): May
  • 六月 (ろくがつ, rokugatsu): June
  • 七月 (しちがつ, shichigatsu): July
  • 八月 (はちがつ, hachigatsu): August
  • 九月 (くがつ, kugatsu): September
  • 十月 (じゅうがつ, jūgatsu): October
  • 十一月 (じゅういちがつ, jūichigatsu): November
  • 十二月 (じゅうにがつ, jūnigatsu): December

Now that you know these basics, you can start telling time and talking about days and months in Japanese! The more you practice, the better you’ll get. Enjoy learning!

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How Do You Tell Time in Japanese?

Learning to tell time in Japanese is an important skill for anyone starting to learn the language. Just like in English, we use numbers and certain words to show what time it is. Let’s look at how to tell time in Japanese with some easy examples.

Basic Words for Telling Time

Before we start, it’s important to know some basic words:

  • 時 (じ, ji): hour
  • 分 (ふん, fun): minute
  • 秒 (びょう, byō): second
  • 午前 (ごぜん, gozen): AM (morning)
  • 午後 (ごご, gogo): PM (afternoon/evening)

How to Say the Time

Telling time in Japanese is pretty simple. The format is:

[hour]+(ji)+[minute]+(fun)[hour] + 時 (ji) + [minute] + 分 (fun)

Examples:

  1. 1:00 - 一時 (いちじ, ichiji)
  2. 2:30 - 二時三十分 (にじさんじゅっぷん, nijisanjuppun)
  3. 3:15 - 三時十五分 (さんじじゅうごふん, sanjijūgofun)
  4. 4:45 - 四時四十五分 (よじよんじゅうごふん, yojiyonjūgofun)

You can see that we add the minutes after the hour. For example, “3:15” means “three o’clock and fifteen minutes.”

Saying AM and PM

Now, let’s talk about how to say if it’s morning or afternoon. Here’s what you do:

  • For morning times, you put 午前 (gozen) before the hour.

    • 8:00 AM - 午前八時 (ごぜんはちじ, gozenhachiji)
  • For afternoon times, you add 午後 (gogo).

    • 3:00 PM - 午後三時 (ごごさんじ, gogosanji)

Full Sentences

If you want to say a complete sentence when telling the time, you can use the word です (desu), which means “is.”

For example:

  • It is 5:30 AM. - 午前五時三十分です (ごぜんごじさんじゅっぷんです, gozengojisanjuppun desu).

Using this structure is a great way to express the time fully.

Days of the Week and Months

Besides telling time, it’s also good to know how to talk about days of the week and months.

Days of the Week

  • 月曜日 (げつようび, getsuyōbi): Monday
  • 火曜日 (かようび, kayōbi): Tuesday
  • 水曜日 (すいようび, suiyōbi): Wednesday
  • 木曜日 (もくようび, mokuyōbi): Thursday
  • 金曜日 (きんようび, kin'yōbi): Friday
  • 土曜日 (どようび, doyōbi): Saturday
  • 日曜日 (にちようび, nichiyōbi): Sunday

Months of the Year

  • 一月 (いちがつ, ichigatsu): January
  • 二月 (にがつ, nigatsu): February
  • 三月 (さんがつ, sangatsu): March
  • 四月 (しがつ, shigatsu): April
  • 五月 (ごがつ, gogatsu): May
  • 六月 (ろくがつ, rokugatsu): June
  • 七月 (しちがつ, shichigatsu): July
  • 八月 (はちがつ, hachigatsu): August
  • 九月 (くがつ, kugatsu): September
  • 十月 (じゅうがつ, jūgatsu): October
  • 十一月 (じゅういちがつ, jūichigatsu): November
  • 十二月 (じゅうにがつ, jūnigatsu): December

Now that you know these basics, you can start telling time and talking about days and months in Japanese! The more you practice, the better you’ll get. Enjoy learning!

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