Telling Time
Telling time: mấy giờ?, X giờ Y phút
Can tell and ask the time in Vietnamese using giờ/phút, rưỡi, and time-of-day markers
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Bây giờ là mấy giờ? — 3 giờ rưỡi.
What time is it? — 3:30.
Tôi đi làm lúc 8 giờ sáng.
I go to work at 8 AM.
Cuộc họp bắt đầu lúc 2 giờ chiều.
The meeting starts at 2 PM.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Thời gian — Telling Time
Vietnamese time-telling follows a simple pattern: number + giờ (hour) + number + phút (minute).
| Vietnamese | English |
|---|---|
| Mấy giờ rồi? | What time is it? |
| Bây giờ là 3 giờ. | It's 3 o'clock now. |
| 7 giờ 30 phút | 7:30 |
| 7 giờ rưỡi | 7:30 (half past 7) |
| 8 giờ 15 phút | 8:15 |
| 9 giờ kém 10 (phút) | 8:50 (10 to 9) |
| 12 giờ trưa | noon |
| 12 giờ đêm | midnight |
rưỡi = half: Used for :30 — ba giờ rưỡi = 3:30. Much more natural than saying ba giờ ba mươi phút.
kém = minus: For 'to' time — 10 giờ kém 5 = 9:55 (10 minus 5). Less common in everyday speech; most people just say the exact time.
Time periods: sáng (morning), trưa (noon), chiều (afternoon), tối (evening), đêm (night). Added after the time: 7 giờ sáng = 7 AM, 7 giờ tối = 7 PM.
Common Error Patterns
Used incorrect format for telling time
Vietnamese time format: number + giờ + (number + phút). For :30, use rưỡi. For AM/PM, add sáng/chiều/tối AFTER the time.
Bây giờ là mấy giờ? — 3 giờ rưỡi.
What time is it? — 3:30.
mấy giờ = what time (literally: how-many hour). rưỡi = half, used for :30. Much simpler than German/Russian/Czech!
Tôi đi làm lúc 8 giờ sáng.
I go to work at 8 AM.
sáng = morning (AM). Time period comes AFTER the time: 8 giờ sáng = 8 in-the-morning. lúc = at (for specific times).
Cuộc họp bắt đầu lúc 2 giờ chiều.
The meeting starts at 2 PM.
chiều = afternoon (PM). So 2 giờ chiều = 2 PM. In everyday speech, Vietnamese mostly uses 12-hour format with sáng/chiều/tối.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises