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Exercise

Tell the time in Chinese

Two ways to practise: read the clock and say the time in Chinese, or hear/read the Chinese and drag the hands to match.

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Tip: the audio is the reference for pronunciation — the pinyin shows the tones, but listen and copy the audio.

How to tell the time in Chinese

Chinese time is refreshingly regular: it is all numbers plus a few building blocks. The hour takes 点 (diǎn, "o'clock"), the minutes take 分 (fēn), and a word for the part of the day goes in front when it matters. Once you know the numbers 1–59, you can say any time.

  • Hours — number + 点: 三点 = 3:00. Two o'clock is 两点 (liǎng diǎn), never 二点.
  • Minutes — number + 分: 三点二十分 = 3:20. Minutes under ten take 零 (líng): 三点零五分 = 3:05.
  • Half past — 半 (bàn): 三点半 = 3:30.
  • Quarter past / to — 一刻 (yí kè) and 三刻 (sān kè): 三点一刻 = 3:15, 三点三刻 = 3:45. You can also say 差一刻四点 (chà yí kè sì diǎn, "a quarter short of four").
  • Parts of the day — 凌晨 (língchén, 0–4), 早上 (zǎoshang, 5–8), 上午 (shàngwǔ, 9–11), 中午 (zhōngwǔ, 12), 下午 (xiàwǔ, 13–17) and 晚上 (wǎnshang, 18–23) go in front: 晚上七点 = 7 PM.
  • 24-hour clock — timetables and announcements read the numbers straight: 十九点三十分 = 19:30.

Tips to learn Chinese time faster

  • Master the numbers 1–59 first; every time expression is built from them. The numbers list has all of them.
  • Remember the one exception: 两 (liǎng) for two o'clock and two hours.
  • Start with whole hours, then add half hours and quarters, then minutes — use the difficulty buttons above.
  • Always say it out loud and compare with the audio; the tones on 点 (diǎn) and 分 (fēn) matter.
  • Add the part-of-day word (早上, 下午, 晚上) as soon as whole hours feel easy — that is how people actually speak.
  • Practise a few minutes every day rather than one long session.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say the time in Chinese?

Say the hour with 点 (diǎn) and the minutes with 分 (fēn): 3:20 is 三点二十分. Add 上午 (morning), 下午 (afternoon) or 晚上 (evening) in front when it matters.

How do you say “half past” in Chinese?

Use 半 (bàn) after the hour: 1:30 is 一点半. A quarter past is 一刻 (yí kè) and a quarter to is 差一刻 (chà yí kè).

Is two o'clock 二点 or 两点?

两点 (liǎng diǎn). For hours, quantities and measure words Chinese uses 两 instead of 二 for "two".

Next: practise saying the date in Chinese, or build the numbers you need with the numbers flashcards.