To tell the time in French, say il est + the hour + heure(s): il est une heure, il est trois heures. Add minutes after the hour up to half past (trois heures et quart, trois heures et demie) and use moins after that: quatre heures moins le quart (3:45). The word heures is never left out.
Asking and giving the time
Quelle heure est-il ?What time is it?
Il est une heure.It’s one o’clock.
Il est cinq heures.It’s five o’clock.
- Always il est. The time is given with the impersonal il est, not c’est: Il est huit heures.
- Always heure(s). The word heure is compulsory, where English can drop “o’clock”: “it’s eight” is il est huit heures. It is singular for one, plural from two: une heure, deux heures.
- Midday and midnight. Il est midi, il est minuit, with no heures. In twelve-hour speech, French does not say “douze heures” for noon.
Informally, you will also hear Il est quelle heure ? and T’as l’heure ? (“Have you got the time?”).
The minutes: et, moins and the rest
As in British English, minutes are added up to half past and taken away after it. But the hour comes first, and the minutes follow the word heures.
| French | Time | Word for word |
|---|---|---|
| Il est trois heures | 3:00 | it is three hours |
| trois heures cinq | 3:05 | three hours five |
| trois heures dix | 3:10 | three hours ten |
| trois heures et quart | 3:15 | three hours and quarter |
| trois heures vingt | 3:20 | three hours twenty |
| trois heures vingt-cinq | 3:25 | three hours twenty-five |
| trois heures et demie | 3:30 | three hours and a half |
| quatre heures moins vingt-cinq | 3:35 | four hours minus twenty-five |
| quatre heures moins vingt | 3:40 | four hours minus twenty |
| quatre heures moins le quart | 3:45 | four hours minus the quarter |
| quatre heures moins dix | 3:50 | four hours minus ten |
| quatre heures moins cinq | 3:55 | four hours minus five |
Note that there is no et before ordinary minutes: trois heures dix, not “trois heures et dix”. Et only appears with quart and demie.
The trap for British pupils is the second half of the clock: trois heures moins le quart is 2:45, because moins counts back from the hour that is named. And “half three” must become trois heures et demie; French has no equivalent shortcut.
In everyday speech, especially with digital clocks, minutes are often read as numbers: trois heures quinze, trois heures trente, trois heures quarante-cinq. In Belgium and in parts of France and Quebec, you will also hear moins quart without the article.
Spelling: demie or demi?
After heure, which is feminine, write et demie: une heure et demie. After midi and minuit, which are masculine, write et demi: midi et demi, minuit et demi. The pronunciation is the same.
Liaisons with heures
Because heure starts with a silent h, the number before it links to it. This is where French numbers change sound, and pupils need to hear it.
| French | Say it like |
|---|---|
| une heure | oo-NUR |
| deux heures | duh-ZUR |
| trois heures | trwah-ZUR |
| cinq heures | sa(n)-KUR |
| six heures | see-ZUR |
| sept heures | seh-TUR |
| huit heures | wee-TUR |
| neuf heures | nuh-VUR |
| dix heures | dee-ZUR |
| onze heures | o(n)-ZUR |
“UR” here is the vowel of British “fur” followed by a light French r. The u of une is the French u: say “ee” with your lips rounded as if for “oo”. The surprising one is neuf heures, where the f becomes a v.
Morning, afternoon and evening
In speech, French adds the part of the day: du matin (in the morning, and also for the small hours: deux heures du matin), de l’après-midi (in the afternoon), du soir (in the evening).
Je me lève à sept heures du matin.I get up at seven in the morning.
Le film commence à huit heures du soir.The film starts at eight in the evening.
The 24-hour clock
The 24-hour clock is used far more in France than in the UK: not only on timetables and official notices, but in ordinary conversation too. The minutes are then read as numbers.
Le train part à dix-sept heures quarante-cinq.The train leaves at 17:45.
In writing, French uses h: 17 h 45, often also 17h45, and 17 h on the hour. The colon (17:45) is common on screens but is not the standard written form.
At what time?
À quelle heure commence le cours ?What time does the lesson start?
À neuf heures et quart.At quarter past nine.
“Around” is vers: vers six heures. “On the dot” is pile: à six heures pile.
Typical mistakes of English-speaking learners
- “C’est trois heures”: use il est.
- Dropping heures: “il est trois” is incomplete.
- Moins counted from the wrong hour: “trois heures moins le quart” to mean 3:45.
- “Et dix”: no et with ordinary minutes.
- Spelling: “une heure et demi”, “midi et demie”.
- Missing liaisons: “deux / heures” pronounced as two separate words.
- Using temps: “Quel temps est-il ?” is wrong. Le temps is time as duration, or the weather (Quel temps fait-il ?); clock time is l’heure, and “one time” is une fois.
In class: a time routine
Telling the time needs little and often. A one-minute routine at the start of the lesson does the job.
- Show a clock or a digital time on the board.
- Ask Quelle heure est-il ? and give pupils a few seconds to prepare the answer in pairs.
- The class answers aloud; then reveal the written answer, with its liaisons marked if needed.
- Add a location: Il est dix heures à Londres. Quelle heure est-il à Paris ? France is one hour ahead of the UK all year round.
- Let a pupil choose the next time and ask the question.
A world map makes the routine richer: point at Paris, Montreal, Dakar or Nouméa, and the class says the time there, discovering the French-speaking world as it goes.
Adapting to your class
- A1Hours only: Il est trois heures.
- A2Quarters and halves: et quart, et demie, moins le quart.
- B1Every five minutes, with du matin / du soir, midi and minuit.
- B2The 24-hour clock, time differences between French-speaking cities, informal questions in listening.
The “L’heure” module does it for you
A world map: you click a city, the class says what time it is there, the answer is revealed. The time changes every lesson. No preparation needed: try everything free for 15 days of use.
Frequently asked questions
How do you ask the time in French?
Quelle heure est-il ? Informally: Il est quelle heure ? or T’as l’heure ?
How do you say half past in French?
With et demie after the hour: Il est deux heures et demie (2:30). After midi and minuit, write et demi.
How do you say quarter to in French?
With moins le quart, counting back from the next hour: Il est cinq heures moins le quart is 4:45.
Do French people use the 24-hour clock?
Yes, much more than in the UK, both in writing (17 h 45) and in everyday conversation: dix-sept heures quarante-cinq.
Why is it il est and not c'est for the time?
Telling the time uses the impersonal construction il est, just as English uses an impersonal “it is”. C’est is not used to give the time.