How to Ask and Tell Time in Japanese
こんにちは！(Konnichiwa!) If you’ve ever wondered how to ask or tell time in Japanese, you’ve come to the right place! Mastering time expressions is essential for everyday conversations, making plans, or simply understanding schedules in Japan. In this guide, we’ll dive deep into the vocabulary, grammar, and practice to ensure you ace your time-telling skills.
1. Asking the Time in Japanese
To ask someone what time it is in Japanese, use the following sentence:
今、何時ですか？ (いま、なんじですか？ / Ima, nanji desu ka?)
Translation: “What time is it now?”
You can also modify the sentence to ask about specific events or times. For example:
- 映画 (えいが/eiga) は 何時ですか？
“What time is the movie?” - 朝ごはん (あさごはん/asagohan) は 何時ですか？
“What time is breakfast?”
When answering, you’ll simply state the time using the format [Hour] + 時 (じ/ji) + [Minute] + 分 (ふん/fun). Let’s explore this in more detail below.
2. How to Tell Time in Japanese
Telling time in Japanese is straightforward once you learn the pattern. The structure is:
[Hour] + 時 (じ/ji) + [Minute] + 分 (ふん/fun)
Here’s a breakdown of hours and minutes.
Hours
- 1 o’clock: いちじ (ichiji)
- 2 o’clock: にじ (niji)
- 3 o’clock: さんじ (sanji)
…and so on up to 12 o’clock.
Minutes
Minutes in Japanese follow this pattern but note some unique pronunciations:
- 1 minute: いっぷん (ippun)
- 2 minutes: にふん (nifun)
- 3 minutes: さんぷん (sanpun)
- 4 minutes: よんぷん (yonpun)
- 5 minutes: ごふん (gofun)
- 10 minutes: じゅっぷん (juppun)
- 30 minutes: さんじゅっぷん (sanjuppun)
AM and PM
Japanese uses 午前 (ごぜん/gozen) for AM and 午後 (ごご/gogo) for PM.
- 3:15 AM → ごぜん さんじ じゅうごふん (gozen sanji juu go fun)
- 7:30 PM → ごご しちじ さんじゅっぷん (gogo shichiji sanjuppun)
3. Essential Time-Related Vocabulary
General Time Words
- 今日 (きょう/kyou): Today
- 明日 (あした/ashita): Tomorrow
- 昨日 (きのう/kinou): Yesterday
- 今 (いま/ima): Now
- 時 (じ/ji): Hour
- 分 (ふん/fun): Minute
- 秒 (びょう/byou): Second
Parts of the Day
- 午前 (ごぜん/gozen): AM
- 午後 (ごご/gogo): PM
- 朝 (あさ/asa): Morning
- 昼 (ひる/hiru): Afternoon
- 夕方 (ゆうがた/yuugata): Evening
- 夜 (よる/yoru): Night
Duration Words
- ～時間 (じかん/jikan): For ~ hours
- Example: 2時間 (にじかん/nijikan): For 2 hours
- ～分間 (ふんかん/funkan): For ~ minutes
- Example: 30分間 (さんじゅっぷんかん/sanjuppunkan): For 30 minutes
4. Practice Questions
Let’s see how much you’ve learned! Try translating these times into Japanese or English. Answers are provided below.
Questions
- What is 10:45 PM in Japanese?
- Translate ごご はちじ ごふん into English.
- How do you say “2:30 AM” in Japanese?
- If someone says いま よじ じゅっぷん です, what time is it?
5. Answers
- ごご じゅうじ よんじゅうごふん (gogo juuji yonjuugo fun)
- 8:05 PM
- ごぜん にじ さんじゅっぷん (gozen niji sanjuppun)
- 4:10
6. Tips for Mastering Japanese Time Expressions
- Practice daily: Look at the clock and say the time aloud in Japanese.
- Listen to native speakers: Watch Japanese TV shows or YouTube videos to hear time-related expressions in real-life contexts.
- Flashcards: Create flashcards for hours, minutes, and time-specific vocabulary.
- Roleplay: Practice asking and answering time-related questions with a friend or language partner.
Conclusion
Now you’re ready to confidently ask and tell time in Japanese! Time expressions are a key part of everyday conversation, and with practice, you’ll become fluent in no time. If you found this guide helpful, subscribe to my blog or check out my YouTube channel for more Japanese lessons. またね！(Matane!)
If you enjoyed this lesson, be sure to check out more posts like this on my blog at My Language Classes. Don’t forget to subscribe my YouTube channel and follow me on Instagram for the latest language learning tips and lessons. Leave a comment below to share your thoughts, or ask any questions you have about nouns.
Happy learning! 😊
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Vikas Kumar is a multilingual educator, language specialist, and book author, and the founder of My Language Classes, an independent language learning platform dedicated to structured, clarity-driven language education.
With over eight years of professional experience working with languages, Vikas has taught and supported learners across English, Spanish, and Japanese, helping them build strong grammatical foundations, practical usage skills, and long-term accuracy. His work focuses on eliminating confusion in language learning by emphasizing structure, patterns, and real usage over rote memorization.
Vikas has worked as a Japanese language expert with multiple multinational organizations, supporting cross-border communication, translation, and language-driven operations in professional environments. Alongside his corporate experience, he has spent several years teaching Japanese and Spanish independently, designing lessons tailored to academic goals, professional needs, and exam preparation.
As an author, Vikas writes structured language learning books that focus on grammar mastery, clarity of usage, and exam-oriented accuracy. His published works include guides on English tenses, verb types, and prepositions, as well as Spanish learning resources aligned with DELE A1 preparation. His books are designed for self-learners, educators, and serious students who want depth, not shortcuts.
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