Telling the time

What time is it

The question is Kioma horo estas?, literally the how-manyeth hour is it?: kiom (how many) with the adjective ending. The answer is la plus an ordinal:

Horo is usually dropped, because la tria already means the third hour. Both are fine:

• Estas la tria horo. - It is three o'clock.

To say at a time, use je:

• Mi venos je la tria. - I will come at three.
• La filmo komenciĝas je la oka. - The film starts at eight.

Je is the preposition Esperanto keeps for jobs no other preposition claims, and clock time is its commonest one. The prepositions article has the rest.

Minutes, halves and quarters

Minutes join the hour with kaj, counting forwards from the hour that has struck. Before the next hour, use antaŭ:

• Estas la tria kaj duono. - It is half past three.
• Estas kvarono antaŭ la kvara. - It is a quarter to four.

La tria kaj duono is half past three, never half past two. German halb vier reaches towards the coming hour; Esperanto counts forwards, the English way.

For timetables and invitations, use the 24-hour clock and read the number straight:

• La kunveno komenciĝos je la dek-kvina horo. - The meeting starts at 15:00.

Noon is tagmezo and midnight noktomezo, both with je. The parts of the day work best as -e adverbs:

• Mi laboras matene. - I work in the morning.