Time is one of the trickiest things to write out in words, because English uses two completely different systems: the old-fashioned "past/to" style and the plain digital style. Mix them up and your sentence sounds wrong. Here is how to get it right every time.
The traditional style: minutes past and to the hour
For times up to 30 minutes past the hour, say the minutes first, then "past", then the hour:
- 3:05 — five past three
- 3:15 — a quarter past three
- 3:30 — half past three
After the half hour, the convention flips: count the minutes remaining and use "to" with the NEXT hour:
- 3:40 — twenty to four
- 3:45 — a quarter to four
- 3:55 — five to four
On the hour itself, use "o'clock": "three o'clock", "nine o'clock". Never write "3 o'clock" in formal text — spell the hour out.
The digital style: just say the numbers
In announcements, schedules, and transport timetables, the digital style dominates: say the hour, then the minutes, as plain numbers:
- 3:05 — three oh five (the zero is "oh", like the letter O)
- 3:15 — three fifteen
- 3:30 — three thirty
- 3:45 — three forty-five
This style is clearer over announcements and in print, which is why railways and airlines use it.
12-hour vs 24-hour clock
In running text, "7 pm" usually becomes "seven in the evening" or "seven p.m." spelled out as "seven p.m." For 24-hour times like 14:30, either convert to the 12-hour form ("half past two in the afternoon") or spell the digits ("fourteen thirty") — both are accepted, but be consistent within a document.
Midnight and noon deserve special care: 12:00 am is "midnight", 12:00 pm is "noon". Writing "twelve o'clock at night" is technically fine but clunky.
Quick rules to remember
- Never mix the two styles in one sentence ("twenty to four and three forty-five" in the same paragraph confuses readers).
- Spell out small, round times in prose ("half past three"), use numerals in tables and timetables.
- In formal or legal documents, write the time in words AND figures: "half past three (3:30 pm)".
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