How to ask for and tell the time in Spanish

- Cómo pedir y dar la hora en español

How to ask for the time in Spanish

To ask for the time in Spanish, we can use one of the following expressions:

To indicate the time, the third person plural of the verb "ser" is used

There is only one exception, where the third person singular is used.

1:00 - Es la una

For the exact hours, we can simply say the number or add the expression en punto (o'clock).

5:00 - Son las cinco o Son las cinco en punto

To express minutes when indicating the time, "y" is used with minutes from 1 to 30 and "menos" with minutes from 31 to 59.

When fifteen minutes of a certain time has passed, we use the expression "Y CUARTO".

If thirty minutes of the hour have elapsed, we say it is "Y MEDIA".

If there are fifteen minutes left before a certain time, we use "MENOS CUARTO".