A1 Grammar · Unit 2 · Topic 4 of 29
Numbers and Time
Numbers 0 to 12 are individual words. 13 to 19 add "-zehn": dreizehn (13), vierzehn (14), etc. Then you have the tens: zwanzig (20), dreißig (30), vierzig (40), etc.
From 21 to 99, say the ones digit first, then "and," then the tens. 21 is einundzwanzig (one-and-twenty), 47 is siebenundvierzig. Written as one word.
For time, use "Es ist" or "Wie spät ist es?" For appointments, use "Um wie viel Uhr?"
The biggest trap for English speakers: halb (half) looks ahead to the next hour. Halb neun is 8:30, not 9:30, because it's halfway to nine. Viertel nach (quarter past) and Viertel vor (quarter to) work like you'd expect.
| Written | Spoken |
|---|---|
| 08.00 Uhr | acht Uhr |
| 08.15 Uhr | Viertel nach acht |
| 08.30 Uhr | halb neun |
| 08.45 Uhr | Viertel vor neun |
Common mistakes
Don't say halb neun for 9:30. It's 8:30. For 9:30, say halb zehn. And say the ones digit first: einundzwanzig, not zwanzigeins.
Memory trick
Half toward the next hour. Halb neun means halfway to nine. For numbers, read backwards: one-and-twenty.
Practice
Write in words, then tell the time.
- Write in words: 23, 47, 66.
- What time is it? 9:30 / 4:15 / 6:45.
Show answers
Answers: dreiundzwanzig, siebenundvierzig, sechsundsechzig. Halb zehn, Viertel nach vier, Viertel vor sieben.