Time

Les nombres 40 à 59

You should already know how to count to 39 in French. Before you can learn how to tell time using a 24-hour clock, you need to learn more numbers. The numbers 40 through 59 use a base followed by a dash and the numbers 1 through 9. In this interactivity, learn the French pronunciation for the numbers 40 through 59. Click the player to begin.

View a printable version of the interactivity. Visit the Developmental Module for a chart referencing the French words for numbers 1-99.

 

L'Horloge de vingt-quatre heures

24-hour time is often referred to as military time. The French use this format very often, especially for schedules intended for public use. To determine time using the 24-hour clock, start off the first half of the day counting the hours normally. The hours from 1:00 am through 12:00 pm are exactly the same as the 12-hour clock, but hours are written differently. For example, 1:00 am is written 01h00 and 2:30 am is written 02h30.The h separates hours and minutes.

After 12:00 pm, military time continues by increasing the hour by 1. For example, 1:00 pm is written 13h00, and 1:30 pm is written 13h30. This continues all of the way until you get to 12:00 am. Midnight is written as 0h00. The advantage of using the 24-hour clock is there is no need to use the abbreviations am or pm because the clock never repeats itself.

It is important to remember that 24-hour time is very similar to digital time. Of course, while the hours are 13 through 24 after 12 noon, the expression of minutes is exactly the same as in digital time. When you do not use 24-hour time every day, it is easier to remember in increments of 3. For example, 3:00 pm is 15h00, 6:00 pm is 18h00, and 9:00 pm is 21h00.

L'heure - Du Vocabulaire et Les Phrases

Before you learn how to tell time, or read a schedule in French, you must explore some important vocabulary and phrases related to time. The table below lists some important vocabulary and phrases related to time. Familiarize yourself with these words and phrases and practice your pronunciation by repeating each word/phrase aloud after the speaker. Click each word/phrase to hear the pronunciation.

French	English
Quelle heure est-il?	What time is it?
heure	hour
heures	hours

Reading a Schedule

You should be able to tell time and read a schedule, including references to time in French. In this interactivity, you will learn how to read a schedule in French. Remember, practice by writing out your own school schedule in French to reinforce the skills you learned in this interactivity. Click the player to begin.

View a printable version of the interactivity.

 

Time Review

Now that you have studied how to read a French schedule, practice what you have learned. In this non-graded interactivity, read each question and use your cursor to select the correct course/time on the schedule. Click the player to get started.