Fra Noi Embrace Your Inner Italian
“Che ore sono?” in Italian
To ask about and tell the time in Italian, we will need to know several expressions and, of course, how to count in Italian. Since there are 60 minutes in an hour, it will be important to know how to count to 60 in Italian! A simple online search should provide this basic information.
The question, “What time is it?” has both singular and plural forms in Italian:
“Che ora è?” or “Che ore sono?”
which, literally mean,
“What hour is (it)?” and “What hours are (they)?”
To an English speaker, this may be a bit strange. If we know to ask the Italian question in singular form, this implies that we know the hour must be 1:00 AM — since 1 AM is the only singular hour on the clock! But, in Italian the two ways to ask the question are interchangeable and one does not need to know exactly the hour to decide which phrase to use.
However, to answer the question, “What time is it?” in Italian, knowledge of the singular Italian noun ora (hour) and the plural ore (hours) does come into play. Here is how it works:
To answer that the time is “one o’clock,” for instance, first remember that Italian nouns always be accompanied by their definite article (the word for “the”). Start your sentence with the noun ora and its definite article l’ for l’ora. For two o’clock through midnight, the answer will be in the plural, and refer to le ore.
Then add the verb essere to your sentence, matching the conjugation of essere to the singular ora or the plural ore, by using the third person singular or plural. “L’ora è…” or “Le ore sono…” This translates literally as, “The hour is…” and “The hours are…”
To complete the first sentence in the singular, simply add “uno” for “one.” To complete the second, plural phrase, add the numbers 2 through 24, depending on which hour it is, of course!
There is no specific translation for the English phrase “o’clock” in Italian, although the phrase “in punto” is occasionally used to mean “on the dot” if one wants to emphasize that the exact time is being given.
In the following two examples below, the subjects l’ora and le ore have been included, along with the phrase in punto to make Italian sentences with a structure similar to that in English. However, these examples would never be used in Italy; the subject is always left out in Italian and these sentences are for reference only.
(L’ora) è l’una (in punto). (The hour) is (at) the one (on the dot).
(Le ore) sono le due (in punto). (The hours) are (at) the two (on the dot).
In practice, the expressions used to describe the time in Italian are much shorter than the sentences given above, and we are left with the following true Italian phrases for one o’clock to twelve o’clock noon, as below:
È l’una. (It is) one.
Sono le due. (They are) two.
Sono le tre. (They are) three.
Sono le quattro. (They are) four.
Sono le cinque. (They are) five.
Sono le sei. (They are) six.
Sono le sette. (They are) seven.
Sono le otto. (They are) eight.
Sono le nove. (They are) nine.
Sono le dieci. (They are) ten.
Sono le undici. (They are) eleven.
Sono le dodici. (They are) twelve.
Now we are almost ready to say exactly what time it is in Italian! We can simply use our knowledge of numbers from one through 60 and add the correct number of minutes to the hour. The hours and minutes are linked using the word e for and. Notice the Italian use of a comma instead of a colon when writing the time:
1,12 È l’una e dodici. It is 1:12 / twelve minutes after one.
2,23 Sono le due e ventitre. It is 2:23 / twenty-three minutes after two.
Italians use the 24 hour, or military system, for official timetables, such as bus, train, or airline schedules, as well as for museum hours and theater times. For morning hours, the numbers one through 12 are used, as expected; after 12 noon, add twelve to each hour until you reach 24 hours. For example, 1 PM is le tredici, 2 PM is le quattordici, and so on. It is not necessary to add “AM” or “PM” to the stated time with the 24 hour clock. Below are some examples using the 24 hour clock:
1,12 È l’una e dodici. It is 1:12 hours / 1:12 AM.
2,23 Sono le due e ventitre. It is 2:23 hours / 2:23 AM.
17,25 Sono le diciassette e venticinque. It is 17:25 hours / 5:25 PM.
20,38 Sono le venti e trentotto. It is 20:38 hours / 10:38 PM.
Now, here is a quick trick to use for times after 45 minutes past the hour: go ahead one hour and subtract from there to get to the correct time. In both English and in Italian, it is helpful to the listener to know that we are closer to the next hour than we are to the last. It also allows us to use smaller numbers, which are easier to remember in Italian. Just use the word meno for less than to connect the hour and the time:
9,50 AM Sono le dieci meno dieci. It is 10 minutes to 10 (AM).
(lit. It is 10 hours minus 10 min.)
1,55 AM Sono le due meno cinque. It is 5 minutes to 2 (AM).
(lit. It is 2 hours minus 5 min.)
7,45 PM Sono le otto meno quindici. It is 15 minutes to 8 (PM).
(lit. It is 8 hours minus 15 min.)
Have fun with your friends who are learning Italian by passing around a clock. Ask each other what time it is, using either the 12 or 24 hour system. Give the answer in exact numbers!
Expressions of Time in Italian
Other Italian expressions are also frequently used to describe the special hours of midnight and noon, as well as the times that are 15, 30 and 45 minutes after the hour.
mezzanotte midnight È mezzanotte. It is midnight.
mezzogiorno noon È mezzogiorno. It is noon.
un quarto a quarter (15 minutes)
mezza half (30 minutes)
tre quarti three quarters (45 minutes)
Here are a few examples that use these Italian expressions. Again, the time given in numbers is written the Italian way, with a comma instead of a colon between the hours and minutes.
12,00 (AM) È mezzanotte. It is midnight.
1,15 È l’una e un quarto. It is one fifteen (AM).
2,30 Sono le due e mezza. It is two thirty (AM).
3,45 Sono le tre e tre quarti. It is three forty five (AM).
One can emphasize the time of day, such as morning, afternoon, evening, or night, by adding the following expressions after the numerical time: di mattina, di pomeriggio, di sera, or di notte, as below. Note that these expressions allow one to avoid using the military time clock!
1,00 (AM) È l’una di mattina. It is one in the morning.
1,00 (PM) È l’una di pomeriggio. It is one in the afternoon.
6,00 (PM) Sono le sei di sera. It is six in the evening.
10,00 (PM) Sono le dieci di notte. It is ten at night.
To make a general statement that it is either early or late in the day, use these expressions:
È presto. (It) is early.
È tardi. (It) is late.
Sono le sei di mattina. È presto! Perché mi hai sbagliato?
It is six in the morning. It’s early! Why did you wake me up?
È mezzanotte. È tardi! Hai rientrato di casa molto in ritardo stasera.
It’s midnight. It’s late! You’ve come back home very late tonight!
Italian Timetables and Schedules
Asking the question…
At perhaps no time in history have people been more obsessed with keeping accurate time than today. European civilization has progressed from outdoor community sundials and bell towers that set morning, noon, and evening hours, to personal electronic devices that keep time down to the millisecond. Most of us keep one of these devices handy at all times. And even our watches are more accurate than the time keeping devices used by the Romans to manage their huge empire!
But even today, it may be necessary to ask or answer a question regarding time. Understanding time tables, for instance, is important when traveling. One may want to verify a train schedule or that a museum is open at a particular time on a particular day. In this case, being able to converse about the time in Italian once again becomes useful, even with the electronics we have at our disposal today.
Listed below are some questions a traveler may need to ask in Italian, given examples in the present, future, and past tense. If you are not familiar with the future and past tenses, you may want to simply remember these examples, just in case you need to ask for information while traveling!
Remember, there is no insertion of the words “does” or “did” in Italian when asking a question, as there is in English. Several irregular past participles will be used in these phrases and combined with either avere or essere to form the passato prossimo.
A che ora….? (At) What time (does)….?
A che ora arriva l’aereo? At what time (does) the airplane arrive? (lit. At what hour arrives the airplane?)
A che ora arriverà l’aereo? At what time will the airplane arrive?
A che ora è arrivato l’aereo? At what time (did) the airplane arrive?
A che ora parte il treno? At what time (does) the train leave?
A che ora partirà il treno? At what time will the train leave?
A che ora è partito il treno? At what time (did) the train leave?
A che ora comincia il viaggio? At what time (does) the trip start?
A che ora comincerà il viaggio? At what time will the trip start?
A che ora è cominciato* il viaggio? At what time (did) the trip start?
A che ora inizia il film? At what time (does) the movie begin?
A che ora inizierà il film? At what time will the movie begin?
A che ora è iniziato* il film? At what time (did) the movie begin?
A che ora finisce il film? At what time (does) the movie end?
A che ora finirà il film? At what time will the movie end?
A che ora è finito* il film? At what time (did) the movie end?
A che ora apre il museo? At what time (does) the museum open?
A che ora aprirà il museo? At what time will the museum open?
A che ora ha aperto il museo? At what time (did) the museum open?
A che ora chiude il museo? At what time (does) the museum close?
A che ora chiuderà il museo? At what time will the museum close?
A che ora ha chiuso il museo? At what time (did) the museum close?
*In these two examples, the use of essere for the passato prossimo may be a little confusing. In these examples, the subjects are “the trip” and “the film.” Notice how the subject is at the end of the sentence since we are asking a question. In technical terms, essere is used because the verbs as used here do not have a direct object (are intransitive) and can stand alone if written as a simple sentence with their subject, as in: “Il viaggio è cominciato; Il film è iniziato; Il film è finito.”
The response…
When the question is asked as in the above section, with, “A che ora…,” the response will be a bit different from how we have learned to state the time so far. The answer will also use the word at, which is the word “a” in Italian. We can mention our special times of day if they apply, such as “a mezzogiorno” or “a mezzanotte.” Otherwise, the preposition a will be combined with the definite article (the) (l’ or le). The Italian definite article l’ is combined with a to make all’ before the word una for the phrase “all’una,” which means “at one.” For all numbers greater than one, use a with the definite article le to make alle (alle due – ventiquattro = at 2-24).
A mezzogiorno. At noon.
A mezzanotte. At midnight.
All’una. At one o’clock.
Alle sette. At seven o’clock.
All’una e cinque. At 1:05 AM.
Alle sette e mezza. At 7:30 AM.
Listed below are the full sentence replies for questions regarding museums, restaurants, and shops, in the present, future, and past tenses. Remember that in Italy the 24 hour clock is used when referring to an official timetable.
Il museo apre alle nove. The museum opens at nine.
Il museo aprirà alle nove. The museum will open at nine.
Il museo ha aperto alle nove. The museum opened at nine.
Il museo chiude alle diciannove. The museum closes at 19:00. (7PM).
Il museo chiuderà alle diciannove. The museum will close at 19:00. (7 PM).
Il museo ha chiuso alle diciannove. The museum closed at 19:00. (7 PM).
Il ristorante apre a mezzogiorno. The restaurant opens at noon.
Il ristorante aprirà a mezzogiorno. The restaurant will open at noon.
Il ristorante ha aperto a mezzogiorno. The restaurant opened at noon.
Il negozio chiude all’una per la pausa pranzo. The store closes at 1(PM) for siesta.
Il negozio chiuderà all’una. The store will close at 1(PM).
Il negozio ha chiuso all’una. The store closed at 1(PM).
More Expressions of Time in Italian
The English word time can be translated into Italian as ora, as we have already learned, as well as tempo or volta. To finish our discussion about telling time in Italian, below are some useful expressions used on a daily basis to describe how much time one has — or doesn’t have!
Non ho tempo. I don’t have time.
C’è ancora tempo. There is still time.
Quanto tempo? How long? (lit. How much time?)
qualche volta sometimes
una volta in più one more time
ancora una volta one more time
tre volte al giorno three time a day
un paio d’ore a couple of hours
minuto / minuti minute / minutes
secondo / secondi second / seconds
attimo moment / instant
avere un attimo to have a moment
Aspetta un attimo! Wait a moment/instant/second!
in un attimo! in a moment!
Un attimo/ Un momento! Hold it!
fino all’una until 1:00
fino a domani until tomorrow
fino a stasera until tonight
in anticipo (di ___minuti) ahead of time (of ___minutes)
in ritardo (di ___minuti) late (of ___ minutes)
tardi late
in punto sharp
l’ora di punta rush hour
in orario/puntuale on time
Remember how to ask and answer
the question, “Che ore sono?”
and you will be on time
when traveling and every day!
For “All the Italian you need to enjoy your trip to Italy,” click on the links below to purchase my Conversational Italian for Travelers books – and then listen to the audiobook “Just the Important Phrases” on your favorite streaming platform! —Kathryn Occhipinti
Conversational Italian for Travelers “Just the Grammar” and “Just the Verbs” books: Available on Amazon.com and Learn Travel Italian.com
Conversational Italian for Travelers “Just the Important Phrases” pocket travel book with audio on your favorite streaming platform from Amazon.com and www.learntravelitalian.com
New! Practice short Italian phrases with this Audio Dialogue Practice Book. Download the audio from your favorite audio platform today! Check it out for free on Amazon.com
