Introduction
Knowing how to ask what time it is is one of the first and most useful skills in any language. This article teaches English-speaking beginners how to ask and understand time in Latin American Spanish, with simple vocabulary, common phrases, sample dialogues, and practical tips for daily situations like trains, appointments, and meetings.
- Basic question: How to ask What time
- Essential vocabulary for telling time
- How to say clock times: simple formats
- Asking about schedules and appointments
- Short, practical dialogues
- Common expressions with time
- Using the 24-hour clock (useful for timetables)
- Common beginner mistakes and how to avoid them
- Practical tips for learning and remembering time phrases
- How to respond when you don’t understand the time
- Practice exercises (simple and realistic)
- Quick reference cheat sheet
- Conclusion
Basic question: How to ask What time
The simplest way to ask what time it is in Spanish is ¿Qué hora es?. This phrase is short, polite, and understood everywhere in Latin America.
Key point: ¿Qué hora es? is used for asking the current time.
Other common variations:
¿Me puede decir la hora? — Can you tell me the time?
¿Tienes hora? — Do you have the time? (informal)
¿A qué hora…? — At what time…? Used when asking about scheduled times, see below.
Essential vocabulary for telling time
hora — hour, time
minuto — minute
y — and (used to add minutes: dos y diez = 2:10)
menos — minus or to (used to subtract minutes: tres menos cuarto = 2:45)
en punto — on the dot, exactly (cinco en punto = 5:00)
media — half past (media = 30 minutes)
cuarto — quarter (15 minutes)
de la mañana — in the morning
de la tarde — in the afternoon
de la noche — in the evening/night
How to say clock times: simple formats
Spanish uses 12-hour and 24-hour formats. Beginners should learn 12-hour expressions first with time-of-day markers.
Examples:
1:00 — Es la una.
2:00 — Son las dos.
5:15 — Son las cinco y cuarto.
7:30 — Son las siete y media.
4:45 — Son las cinco menos cuarto.
6:00 — Son las seis en punto.
11:10 — Son las once y diez.
12:00 (noon) — Es mediodía.
12:00 (midnight) — Es medianoche.
Notes on grammar and agreement
Rule: Use es with una because una is singular: Es la una. Use son with all other hours: Son las dos.
Tip: You can omit the time-of-day phrase when context is clear, but include de la mañana/tarde/noche when you need to be precise.
Asking about schedules and appointments
To ask at what time an event happens, use ¿A qué hora…?
Examples:
At what time does the class start?
¿A qué hora empieza la clase?
At what time does the bus leave?
¿A qué hora sale el autobús?
At what time is the appointment?
¿A qué hora es la cita?
Polite addition: Add por favor at the end to be polite: ¿A qué hora llega el tren, por favor?
Short, practical dialogues
Dialogues help you practice real situations. Read them aloud and repeat the Spanish parts.
At a café
— Disculpe, ¿qué hora es?
— Son las tres y veinte.
Meeting a friend
— ¿A qué hora nos vemos?
— Nos vemos a las seis de la tarde.
Asking on a bus
— ¿A qué hora llegamos a la terminal?
— Llegamos a las nueve en punto.
Common expressions with time
¿Qué hora tienes? — Do you have the time? (used informally)
¿A qué hora abren? — What time do you open?
¿A qué hora cierran? — What time do you close?
Estoy a tiempo. — I am on time.
Llego tarde. — I am arriving late.
Using minutes: small numbers and rounding
Beginners often round to the nearest five minutes in casual conversation. Practice numbers 1–60 in Spanish so you can hear and say exact minutes.
Examples:
2:05 — Son las dos y cinco.
2:02 — Son las dos y dos.
2:29 — Son las dos y veintinueve.
2:31 — Son las dos y treinta y uno.
Using the 24-hour clock (useful for timetables)
Public transport schedules, hospitals, and digital displays often use the 24-hour clock. You can read them like numbers:
14:00 — Son las catorce horas or simply las catorce. For beginners, say it as son las dos de la tarde.
18:30 — Son las dieciocho treinta or las seis y media de la tarde.
Rule: In spoken Latin American Spanish, people commonly use the 12-hour form with de la mañana/tarde/noche instead of the 24-hour reading.
Common beginner mistakes and how to avoid them
Mistake 1: Saying Es las dos instead of Son las dos. Fix: Use son for all plural hours.
Mistake 2: Omitting de la mañana/tarde/noche when context needs clarity. Fix: Add the time-of-day phrase in appointments or travel.
Mistake 3: Confusing y and menos. Fix: Use y to add minutes after the hour, menos to subtract from the next hour.
Mistake 4: Overusing 24-hour reading in casual conversation. Fix: Learn the 12-hour forms first, then the 24-hour for timetables.
Practical tips for learning and remembering time phrases
Practice listening: Use short audio clips or phone recordings of people saying the time. Pause and repeat.
Label clocks: Put sticky notes with Spanish expressions on your clocks: las tres, las cuatro y media.
Use real-life triggers: Ask time questions during daily routines: ¿Qué hora es? when you leave home, when you catch a bus, or when you cook.
Flashcards with minutes: Make cards for cuarto, media, and common minute numbers like cinco, diez, veinte.
How to respond when you don’t understand the time
If you need clarification, use these beginner-friendly phrases:
Could you repeat that slowly?
¿Puede repetirlo despacio?
Can you write it down?
¿Puede escribirlo?
Do you mean 2:15 or 2:45?
¿Quiere decir dos y cuarto o tres menos cuarto?
Practice exercises (simple and realistic)
Exercise 1: Translate to Spanish
What time is it? — ¿Qué hora es?
It is 1:00 PM. — Es la una de la tarde.
It is 6:45. — Son las siete menos cuarto.
Exercise 2: Fill in the blank
Train leaves at 10:30. — Sale a las __________. (Answer: diez y media)
Doctor appointment at 9:00 AM. — La cita es a las __________. (Answer: nueve de la mañana)
Real-life signs and schedule examples
When reading timetables or signs, expect short forms:
Salida: 14:20 — Departure 14:20. Read as: a las dos y veinte de la tarde.
Horario de atención: Lunes a viernes 8:00 – 17:00 — Hours: 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Say: de ocho de la mañana a cinco de la tarde.
Quick reference cheat sheet
¿Qué hora es? — What time is it?
¿A qué hora…? — At what time…?
Es la una. — It is 1:00.
Son las dos. — It is 2:00.
y cuarto — :15
y media — :30
menos cuarto — :45
en punto — on the dot
de la mañana/tarde/noche — time of day
Conclusion
Asking and telling time is a practical, high-frequency skill that gives beginners quick wins in Spanish. Focus on learning ¿Qué hora es?, the key vocabulary like hora, y, menos, and time-of-day phrases, and practice with short dialogues, schedules, and simple exercises. With these basics you will confidently handle everyday situations like travel, appointments, and social plans.
