The time
Grammar
© NTNU
Written time in Norwegian is almost always in the 24-hour clock.
Example:
12:30 – 00:30
When giving exact times, or when speaking in official settings (radio, TV, etc.), the 24-hour clock is always used.
When speaking informally, the 12-hour clock is often used.
In this case, we use the half hour as a reference, but we refer to the half hour prior to or before the next hour. So, for instance, we don’t say half past this hour, but half to the next hour :
| 14:30 | Half past two | Halv tre |
In this system, minutes are then usually rounded off to the nearest five minutes and are given accordingly, to or after the half hour of reference.
| 14:20 or 02:20 p.m | Ti på halv tre | Litt: Ten (minutes) to half three |
| 14:35 or 02:35 p.m | Fem over halv tre | Litt: Five (minutes) past half three |
Other examples:
| 13.00 | ett | one o’clock |
| 13.15 | kvart over ett | quarter past one |
| 13.30 | halv to | half past one |
| 13.45 | kvart på to | quarter to two |
Time expressions
| 1 time = 60 minutter | 1 hour = 60 minutes |
| 1 minutt = 60 sekunder | 1 minute = 60 seconds |
| Hva er klokka? / Hvor mye er klokka? | What is the time? |
| Den er __. / Klokka er __. | It is __. |
Examples
Question: Hva er klokka?
Answer: Klokka er… or Den er…
| 12.00 | tolv | twelve |
| 12.05 | fem over tolv | five past twelve |
| 12.10 | ti over tolv | ten past twelve |
| 12.15 | kvart over tolv | quarter past twelve |
| 12.20 | ti på halv ett | twenty past twelve or litt: ten minutes to half an hour to one o’clock |
| 12.25 | fem på halv ett | twenty-five past twelve or litt: five minutes to half an hour to one o’clock |
| 12.30 | halv ett | half past twelve or *litt: half an hour to one o’clock |
| 12.35 | fem over halv ett | twelve thirty-five or twenty-five to one or litt: five minutes past half an hour to one o’clock |
| 12.40 | ti over halv ett | twelve forty ot twenty to one or litt: ten minutes past half an hour to one o’clock |
| 12.45 | kvart på ett | quarter to one |
| 12.50 | ti på ett | ten to one |
| 12.55 | fem på ett | five to one |
| 13.00 | ett | one o’clock |
Discussion:
How does the clock system work in your language? Are there similarities? If not, which strategy would you use in order to learn and remember the Norwegian clock system? Please, share your experiences in the comments below.
© NTNU
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