# Telling the Time

https://langs123.com/en/japanese/foundations/telling-time/
CEFR A0–A2 · 2026-10-24 · CC BY 4.0, langs123 contributors (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

> The hours with **時****じ**, the minutes with **分****ふん**, **半****はん** for the half hour, **午前****ごぜん** and **午後****ごご**, and how to ask for and say the time. The hour comes first, then the minutes: **三時****さんじ****十分****じゅっぷん**

## Summary

| Point | Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Hours | number + **じ** | **さんじ** / **じゅうにじ** | three o'clock / twelve o'clock |
| Four, seven, nine | **よじ**, **しちじ**, **くじ** | **よじ** / **しちじ** / **くじ** | four o'clock / seven o'clock / nine o'clock |
| What time? | **なんじ** | いま**なんじ**ですか。 — ごじです。 | What time is it now? — It's five o'clock. |
| Minutes | number + **ふん** or **ぷん**, by the last number | 二時にじ**五分****ごふん** / 二時にじ**十分****じゅっぷん** | 2:05 / 2:10 |
| Half past | **半****はん** after the hour | 三時さんじ**半****はん** | 3:30 |
| A.m. and p.m. | **午前****ごぜん** or **午後****ごご** before the time | **午後****ごご**三時さんじ | 3 p.m. |
| At a time | **に** after the time; **何時****なんじ****に** asks it | **七時****しちじ****に**朝あさごはんを食たべます。 | I have breakfast at seven. |
| About, to, just after | **ごろ** for “about”; **前****まえ** before the hour, **過****す****ぎ** just after | 十時じゅうじ**ごろ**、寝ねます。 | I go to bed at about ten. |
| Trap | 3 and 6 minutes: **さんぷん**, **ろっぷん** | 二時にじ**三分****さんぷん** | 2:03 |
| Trap | **時****じ** names the clock hour, **時間****じかん** counts hours | 日本語にほんごを**二時間****にじかん**勉強べんきょうします。 | I study Japanese for two hours. |

## The hours

| Time |  |
| --- | --- |
| いちじ | one o'clock |
| にじ | two o'clock |
| さんじ | three o'clock |
| よじ | four o'clock |
| ごじ | five o'clock |
| ろくじ | six o'clock |
| しちじ | seven o'clock |
| はちじ | eight o'clock |
| くじ | nine o'clock |
| じゅうじ | ten o'clock |
| じゅういちじ | eleven o'clock |
| じゅうにじ | twelve o'clock |

- An hour is its number plus **じ**: **ごじ** is five o'clock. **ごじ** / **じゅうにじ** (five o'clock / twelve o'clock)
- Four, seven and nine take the readings **よ**, **しち** and **く**: **よじ**, **しちじ**, **くじ**. **よじ** / **しちじ** / **くじ** (four o'clock / seven o'clock / nine o'clock)
- In writing the number is a kanji or a digit before **時****じ**. **三時****さんじ** / **十二時****じゅうにじ** / **3****時****じ** (three o'clock / twelve o'clock / three o'clock)

## Minutes

| Time |  |
| --- | --- |
| 二時にじ**一分****いっぷん** | 2:01 |
| 二時にじ**二分****にふん** | 2:02 |
| 二時にじ**三分****さんぷん** | 2:03 |
| 二時にじ**四分****よんぷん** | 2:04 |
| 二時にじ**五分****ごふん** | 2:05 |
| 二時にじ**六分****ろっぷん** | 2:06 |
| 二時にじ**七分****ななふん** | 2:07 |
| 二時にじ**八分****はっぷん** | 2:08 |
| 二時にじ**九分****きゅうふん** | 2:09 |
| 二時にじ**十分****じゅっぷん** | 2:10 |
| 二時にじ**十五分****じゅうごふん** | 2:15 |
| 二時にじ**二十分****にじゅっぷん** | 2:20 |
| 二時にじ**二十五分****にじゅうごふん** | 2:25 |
| 二時にじ**四十五分****よんじゅうごふん** | 2:45 |

- The last number decides: **ふん** after 2, 5, 7 and 9, **ぷん** after 1, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 0, with a small **っ** after 1, 6, 8 and 10. 二時にじ**十三分****じゅうさんぷん** / 二時にじ**二十七分****にじゅうななふん** / 二時にじ**四十八分****よんじゅうはっぷん** (2:13 / 2:27 / 2:48)
- Minutes use **よん**, **なな** and **きゅう**, unlike the hours: **よんぷん**, **ななふん**, **きゅうふん**. 二時にじ**四分****よんぷん** / 二時にじ**七分****ななふん** / 二時にじ**九分****きゅうふん** (2:04 / 2:07 / 2:09)
- Other counters change their sounds in the same way. See Counters.

## Half past, a.m. and p.m.

- Half past is **半****はん** after the hour: **三時半****さんじはん** is 3:30. The hour keeps its own number. 三時さんじ**半****はん** / 十二時じゅうにじ**半****はん** (3:30 / 12:30)
- **午前****ごぜん** (morning, before noon) and **午後****ごご** (afternoon, after noon) come before the time. **午前****ごぜん**九時くじ / **午後****ごご**三時さんじ (9 a.m. / 3 p.m.)
- Timetables and schedules also use the 24-hour clock: **十五時****じゅうごじ** is 3 p.m. **十五時****じゅうごじ** / **二十時****にじゅうじ**三十分さんじゅっぷん (15:00 / 20:30)

## Asking and saying the time

| Point | Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| What time is it? | **なんじ**, answered with the hour and **です** | いま**なんじ**ですか。 — ごじです。 | What time is it now? — It's five o'clock. |
| Hour and minute | **何時****なんじ****何分****なんぷん** | 今いま、**何時****なんじ****何分****なんぷん**ですか。 — 三時さんじ十分じゅっぷんです。 | What time is it exactly? — It's ten past three. |
| At what time? | **何時****なんじ****に** | **何時****なんじ****に**起おきますか。 — 六時ろくじ半はんに起おきます。 | What time do you get up? — I get up at half past six. |
| At a time | **に** follows the time. See Particles を, に, で, へ. | 七時しちじ**に**朝あさごはんを食たべます。 | I have breakfast at seven. |
| From … to … | **から** and **まで** follow the times. See Particles と, も, の. | 九時くじ**から**五時ごじ**まで**仕事しごとです。 | Work is from nine to five. |
| About | **ごろ** after the time; it replaces nothing | 十時じゅうじ**ごろ**、寝ねます。 | I go to bed at about ten. |
| To the hour, just after | minutes + **前****まえ** counts toward the hour; **過****す****ぎ** follows it | 三時さんじ**五分前****ごふんまえ**です。 / 三時さんじ**過****す****ぎ**です。 | It's five to three. / It's just after three. |
| How many hours? | **時間****じかん** counts hours of duration. See Counters. | 日本語にほんごを**二時間****にじかん**勉強べんきょうします。 | I study Japanese for two hours. |

## Typical errors

| ✗ | ✓ |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| よんじ | **よじ** | four o'clock is **よじ**, never **よんじ** |
| きゅうじ | **くじ** | nine o'clock is **くじ**, never **きゅうじ** |
| 二時にじ三分さんふん | 二時にじ**三分****さんぷん** | after 3 the counter is **ぷん**, with a sound change, not **ふん** |
| 二時にじ六分ろくふん | 二時にじ**六分****ろっぷん** | 6 minutes is **ろっぷん**, with the small **っ** |
| 九時くじ午前ごぜん | **午前****ごぜん**九時くじ | **午前****ごぜん** and **午後****ごご** stand before the time, not after it |
| 半はん三時さんじ | 三時さんじ**半****はん** | **半****はん** follows the hour: “half three” is **三時半****さんじはん**, with the hour first |
| 日本語にほんごを二時にじ勉強べんきょうします。 | 日本語にほんごを**二時間****にじかん**勉強べんきょうします。 | **時****じ** names a clock hour; a length of time takes **時間****じかん** |