What mean what time

Обозначение времени в английском языке: What time is it?

В некоторых странах, таких как США, Австралии, Канаде, Филиппинах, преобладает 12-ти часовой формат обозначения времени, при котором сутки разбиты на две равные части. Поэтому для уточнения, в какой именно половине дня будет или происходит событие, используются свои временные маркеры.

Что означают AM и PM

Чтобы внести ясность, о каком из 2 отрезков на циферблате говорится, в англоязычных странах употребляют латинские сокращения am и pm.

AM (лат. ante meridiem) дословно переводится «до полудня» и, соответственно, предполагает исчисление времени с полуночи до середины дня.

PM (лат. post meridiem) расшифровывается как «после полудня» и применяется для обозначения времени в период с 12 дня до полуночи.

Обратите внимание, с лова «minutes» и «hours» обычно только подразумеваются при любом варианте обозначения времени и в речи опускаются.

На письме встречается несколько вариантов указания маркеров времени:

Употребление «o’clock»

Наряду с am и pm для указания времени суток также часто используется наречие «o’clock» (на часах, по часам). Его отличительной особенностью является употребление только с ровным счетом часов (без указания минут).

It has to be done no later than six o’clock. – Это должно быть сделано не позже шести часов.
Lessons begin at eight o’clock. – Уроки начинаются в восемь часов.

Обычно o’clock употребляется, когда обоим собеседникам понятно, о какой половине дня говорится. Но, в случаях необходимости уточнения, применимы in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night, a.m., p.m.

I’ll be there at three o’clock in the afternoon. – Я буду там в три часа дня.
She called me at five o’clock in the morning. – Она позвонила мне в пять часов утра.

Несколько примеров идиоматических выражений с «o’clock»:

To know what o’clock it is – 1) знать действительное положение вещей; понимать что к чему; 2) знать толк в чем-либо 3) быть себе на уме; 4) видеть насквозь
To get on like one o’clock – прекрасно себя чувствовать, преуспевать
Like one o’clock – очень быстро; с большой охотой

Часы и минуты в английском языке

Самым простым способом ответить на вопрос «What time is it?» — это назвать часы и минуты цифрами. При этом варианте потребуется только безличная конструкция It is и 2 числа без предлогов:

08: 10 – It is eight ten.
15:25 – It’s three twenty-five p.m.

Если рассматривать предлоги, которые необходимы в построении фраз, связанных со временем, то важно запомнить 3 основных:

At nine o’clock. – В девять часов.

It’s ten past five. – Десять минут после пяти. = Десять минут шестого.

В американском варианте английского «past» может быть заменен на «after».

It’s five to six. – Пять минут до шести. = Без пяти шесть.

В американском варианте английского «to» может быть заменен на «till» или «before».

Как и в русском, в английском языке широко применимо употребление таких временных обозначений, как половина (half) и четверть (quarter) часа.

Half всегда используется без артикля с предлогом past, и, соответственно, называя час, который уже наступил:

It’s half past seven. – Полчаса после семи. = Полвосьмого.

Quarter всегда употребляется с неопределенным артиклем «a» и может нести значение как «без пятнадцати» в сочетании с предлогом to, так и «пятнадцать минут такого-то часа» в сочетании с предлогом past:

Полезные слова и выражения по теме «Английское время»

What time or which time?

Strictly speaking, when referring to one or more of a definite set of values, the word ‘which’ should be employed. When referring to one or more of an unknown or infinate set of values, the word ‘what’ would be used instead.

E.g. Which do you prefer; tea or coffee?

What sort of music do you like?

In practice, however, the above protocol would sound wrong if applied consistently. Let’s take the example of asking for the time.

Any thoughts? Where do you draw the line between which and what? Are times of the day really definite values?

2 Answers 2

As you noted, the word «which» when asking a question is typically used to imply a choice between definite values or a small potential list. On the other hand, «what» is used to asked for a single answer without providing options or when the set of options is large.

Keeping that in mind, there are 24 hours in a day and 60 minutes in each hour—by that count, «what time is it» has 1440 answers!

Some examples using the one object (color) that is sometimes a definite list and sometimes not:

Which color do you prefer: red or blue?

What is your favorite color?

Which of the colors of the rainbow do you like best

The last one doesn’t provide an explicit list, but the rainbow is often considered to have 6-8 specific colors so the scope of the choices is still limited.

You might use «which» in association with time if you narrow down the options:

Which works best for you: 9am or 2pm?

Which do you prefer: morning or evening?

What time tomorrow works best for you? (very open-ended)

Going the opposite direction, «what is your favorite hot beverage» would be a different way to frame your first question.

This question may sound silly, but it has been bugging me for years.

If I ask a question about a precise point in time, should I say «What time. » or «At what time. «?

At what time does Billy arrive at the swimming pool?

What time does Billy arrive at the swimming pool?

4 Answers 4

The initial preposition at in such contexts is entirely optional, but it usually wouldn’t be included (although in reality we usually use when rather than [at] what time anyway :).

OP’s specific example happens to include a «location-based» clause based on at [the swimming pool], but it might be worth looking at two slightly different contexts.

1a: What time does the shop open?
1b: At what time does the shop open?
1c: What time does the shop open at?

2a: Where did you come?
2b: From where did you come?
2c: Where did you come from?

The point being that because there’s no credible alternative meaning in the first pair that depends on whether the preposition is included or not, it’s entirely a stylistic choice (and on average we don’t bother with unnecessary words). But the second example shows that we do include the preposition where it’s required to avoid ambiguity.

Is noon 12am or 12pm?

12-hour clock got you in a spin? Maybe it’s time for an explanation

‘Noon‘ means ‘midday’ or 12 o’clock during the day. ‘Midnight’ refers to 12 o’clock during the night. Simple right?

Well, maybe not, especially if you’re using a 12-hour clock.

When most people say 12pm, typically they’re talking about the middle of the day: 12 noon. When they say 12am, they normally mean 12 midnight.

While most people follow this convention, technically it’s not quite right – as you’ll see from the definition of am and pm below. To avoid any confusion (and to make sure you arrive on time), it might be best to say 12 noon or 12 midnight instead.

Alternatively, you could use the 24-hour clock system, where 12:00 is noon and 00:00 (or 24:00) is midnight.

What does am and pm mean?

The 12-hour clock divides the 24-hour day into two periods.

At exactly 12 noon, the Sun is at its highest point in the sky and directly over the meridian. It is therefore neither ‘ante’ (am) nor ‘post’ (pm) meridiem. At 12 midnight it also neither am nor pm.

The 24-hour analogue clock

This is the Shepherd Gate Clock, which since 1852 has been installed outside the gates of the Royal Observatory Greenwich. Notice anything strange?

Instead of the usual numbers 1-12 on its clock face, it has 24 Roman numerals. That means that the hour hand goes round only once in every 24 hours.

At 12 noon, instead of pointing straight up, the hour hand points straight down at XII. If you want to confuse your friends, you can own your very own replica version.

But this clock has another secret. The Shepherd Gate Clock was linked to the main ‘motor clock’ inside the Royal Observatory, which from 1852 to 1893 was the central clock that determined the whole British time system.

By using telegraph wires, the time determined by this highly accurate Observatory clock could be shared across the country. For the first time, cities from London to Glasgow to Belfast could share exactly the same time.

By 1866 Observatory time was even being sent to the United States, with transatlantic submarine cables connecting Greenwich with Harvard University in Massachusetts.

If all this talk about time has got you in a spin, why not visit the Royal Observatory for yourself? Explore the home of Greenwich Mean Time, and find out more about the mysteries of space at London’s only planetarium.

UTC – The World’s Time Standard

Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) is the basis for civil time today. This 24-hour time standard is kept using highly precise atomic clocks combined with the Earth’s rotation.

The Greenwich Meridian in London, England.

A Standard, Not a Time Zone

Atomic and Solar Time

Two components are used to determine UTC:

UT Started in 1884

Universal Time (UT) was created at the International Meridian Conference in 1884. This is the basis for the 24-hour time zone system we know today.

At the time, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) was chosen as the world’s time standard. The reference line or starting point, the Prime Meridian, was determined to be the transit circle at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London. The transit circle is a part of the telescope’s mechanics and it is still cited as the prime meridian’s original reference (0° longitude).

From GMT to UTC

In 1960, the International Radio Consultative Committee formalized the concept of UTC, and it was put into practice the year after. The name Coordinated Universal Time was officially adopted in 1967.

UTC was adjusted several times until 1972, when leap seconds were introduced to keep UTC in line with the Earth’s rotation, which is not entirely even, and less exact than atomic clocks.

GMT is now a Time Zone

Until 1972, Greenwich Mean Time (also known as Zulu time) was the same as Universal Time (UT).

Since then, GMT is no longer a time standard. Today, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is only the name of a time zone that is used by a few countries in Africa and Western Europe, including the UK during winter and all year in Iceland.