Grammar: Time
Grammar: Time
Telling Time in Italian
- The phrase che ora è? or che ore sono? are used to ask “What time is it?” in Italian.
- To express time, use è l’una for “it’s one o’clock” and sono le due, sono le tre, etc., for “it’s two o’clock”, “it’s three o’clock”, and so forth.
Expressing the Time of Day
- The phrases di mattina (in the morning), del pomeriggio (in the afternoon), and di sera (in the evening) can be used to specify the time of day. For instance, “Sono le sette del pomeriggio” means “It’s seven in the afternoon”.
- However, Italians more commonly use a 24-hour clock when speaking formally or telling time in official settings.
Expressing Duration
- To express duration, the word per is used. For example, “Studio italiano per due ore ogni giorno” means “I study Italian for two hours every day”.
- Another commonly used phrase is da… a to express “from… to,” such as in “Lavoro da otto a cinque” (I work from eight to five).
Referencing Past, Present, and Future
- For events in the past, use fa. For instance, “Ho finito di cenare un’ora fa” means “I finished eating dinner an hour ago”.
- For future events, use fra or tra. For example, “Arriverò tra due ore” means “I will arrive in two hours.”
Describing Frequency
- To describe frequency, use phrases like ogni giorno (every day), una volta alla settimana (once a week), due volte al mese (twice a month), tre volte all’anno (three times a year), etc.
- Other common expressions include sempre (always), di solito (usually), spesso (often), qualche volta (sometimes), raramente (rarely), and mai (never).
Remember, understanding how to express and use time in Italian provides a foundational aspect in achieving fluency in Italian conversation and writing.