Telling the Time in Arabic: Hours, Halves, Quarters and Prayer Times

• الساعة الواحدة (as-sa'a al-wahida) — one o'clock
• الساعة الثانية (as-sa'a ath-thaniya) — two o'clock
• الساعة الثالثة (as-sa'a ath-thalitha) — three o'clock
• الساعة الرابعة (ar-rabi'a) — four o'clock
• الساعة الخامسة (al-khamisa) — five o'clock

The pattern continues through العاشرة (al-'ashira, ten), الحادية عشرة (eleven) and الثانية عشرة (twelve).

Half, quarter and minutes

• و النصف (wa an-nisf) — and a half: الساعة الثالثة والنصف (3:30)
• و الربع (wa ar-rub') — and a quarter: الساعة الثانية والربع (2:15)
• إلا ربعاً (illa rub'an) — a quarter to: الساعة الخامسة إلا ربعاً (4:45)
• و عشر دقائق (wa 'ashr daqa'iq) — and ten minutes

Morning, afternoon and evening

• صباحاً (sabahan) — in the morning
• ظهراً (zuhran) — at noon or midday
• بعد الظهر (ba'da az-zuhr) — in the afternoon
• مساءً (masa'an) — in the evening
• ليلاً (layl-an) — at night

The five daily prayers

Many Muslims structure the day by the five prayers, whose times shift with the sun:

• الفجر (al-fajr) — dawn
• الظهر (az-zuhr) — midday
• العصر (al-'asr) — afternoon
• المغرب (al-maghrib) — sunset
• العشاء (al-'isha') — night

In Muslim-majority countries, shops and offices may adjust hours around the Friday midday prayer and during Ramadan.

24-hour time

In official contexts, such as train timetables, the 24-hour clock is common.

Days and dates

Combine with weekday names: يوم الاثنين الساعة الثامنة صباحاً (yawm al-ithnayn as-sa'a ath-thamina sabahan), "Monday at eight in the morning".

Practice

1. Say the time every hour for a day.
2. Learn the feminine ordinals one to twelve.
3. Set your phone clock to Arabic numerals for a week.
4. Look up any unfamiliar words.

Look up time words with English Arabic Dictionary →