Numbers, Time, Days, and Dates in English
Learning to use numbers, tell the time, and talk about days and dates is essential for everyday English. Let's learn how to do this correctly!
Numbers
Cardinal numbers (counting)
These are the basic counting numbers:
- 0 = zero
- 1 = one
- 2 = two
- 3 = three
- 4 = four
- 5 = five
- 6 = six
- 7 = seven
- 8 = eight
- 9 = nine
- 10 = ten
11 = eleven, 12 = twelve, 13 = thirteen, 14 = fourteen, 15 = fifteen, 16 = sixteen, 17 = seventeen, 18 = eighteen, 19 = nineteen
20 = twenty, 30 = thirty, 40 = forty, 50 = fifty, 60 = sixty, 70 = seventy, 80 = eighty, 90 = ninety, 100 = one hundred
Numbers 21-99
Connect tens and ones with a hyphen (-):
- 21 = twenty-one
- 35 = thirty-five
- 48 = forty-eight
- 67 = sixty-seven
- 99 = ninety-nine
Large numbers
- 100 = one hundred
- 200 = two hundred
- 1,000 = one thousand
- 10,000 = ten thousand
- 100,000 = one hundred thousand
- 1,000,000 = one million
Examples with large numbers:
- 365 = three hundred and sixty-five
- 1,250 = one thousand, two hundred and fifty
- 5,432 = five thousand, four hundred and thirty-two
Ordinal numbers (order)
Use these for positions and dates:
- 1st = first
- 2nd = second
- 3rd = third
- 4th = fourth
- 5th = fifth
- 6th = sixth
- 7th = seventh
- 8th = eighth
- 9th = ninth
- 10th = tenth
11th = eleventh, 12th = twelfth, 13th = thirteenth, 20th = twentieth, 21st = twenty-first, 30th = thirtieth, 100th = one hundredth
Telling the Time
Asking about time
- What time is it?
- What's the time?
- Do you have the time?
O'clock (exactly on the hour)
- 1:00 = It's one o'clock.
- 7:00 = It's seven o'clock.
- 12:00 = It's twelve o'clock.
Minutes past the hour (0-30 minutes)
Use past for minutes after the hour:
- 3:05 = It's five past three.
- 8:10 = It's ten past eight.
- 6:15 = It's quarter past six.
- 9:20 = It's twenty past nine.
- 11:30 = It's half past eleven.
Minutes to the hour (31-59 minutes)
Use to for minutes before the next hour:
- 4:35 = It's twenty-five to five.
- 7:40 = It's twenty to eight.
- 2:45 = It's quarter to three.
- 10:50 = It's ten to eleven.
- 5:55 = It's five to six.
Digital time (24-hour clock)
You can also say the numbers directly:
- 3:15 = It's three fifteen.
- 8:30 = It's eight thirty.
- 10:45 = It's ten forty-five.
- 14:20 = It's fourteen twenty.
AM and PM
- AM = morning (from midnight to noon)
- PM = afternoon/evening (from noon to midnight)
Examples:
- 9:00 AM = nine in the morning
- 3:00 PM = three in the afternoon
- 8:00 PM = eight in the evening
Useful time expressions
- It's midday / noon. (12:00 PM)
- It's midnight. (12:00 AM)
- It's early morning. (5-8 AM)
- It's late at night. (10 PM - 2 AM)
Days of the Week
The seven days are:
- Monday
- Tuesday
- Wednesday
- Thursday
- Friday
- Saturday
- Sunday
Important notes:
- Days always start with a capital letter.
- Use on before a specific day: on Monday
- Use on + day + s for every week: on Mondays (every Monday)
Examples:
- The meeting is on Tuesday.
- I go to the gym on Fridays. (every Friday)
- I work from Monday to Friday.
- The shop is closed on Sundays.
Parts of the week:
- weekday = Monday to Friday
- weekend = Saturday and Sunday
- at the weekend / on the weekend = on Saturday and Sunday
Months of the Year
The twelve months are:
- January (Jan.)
- February (Feb.)
- March (Mar.)
- April (Apr.)
- May
- June (Jun.)
- July (Jul.)
- August (Aug.)
- September (Sep./Sept.)
- October (Oct.)
- November (Nov.)
- December (Dec.)
Important notes:
- Months always start with a capital letter.
- Use in before months: in January
Examples:
- My birthday is in May.
- The course starts in September.
- It's very cold in January.
Writing Dates
British English format:
Day / Month / Year
- 15/03/2024 = 15th March 2024
- 01/01/2025 = 1st January 2025
American English format:
Month / Day / Year
- 03/15/2024 = March 15th, 2024
- 01/01/2025 = January 1st, 2025
How to write dates in words:
British English:
- 15th March 2024
- the fifteenth of March, 2024
American English:
- March 15th, 2024
- March fifteenth, 2024
Saying dates out loud:
In British English:
- 15/03/2024 = "the fifteenth of March, twenty twenty-four"
- 01/12/2023 = "the first of December, twenty twenty-three"
In American English:
- 03/15/2024 = "March fifteenth, twenty twenty-four"
- 12/01/2023 = "December first, twenty twenty-three"
Years
How to say years:
2000-2009:
- 2000 = two thousand
- 2005 = two thousand and five
- 2009 = two thousand and nine
2010-present:
- 2010 = twenty ten
- 2020 = twenty twenty
- 2024 = twenty twenty-four
Before 2000:
- 1990 = nineteen ninety
- 1985 = nineteen eighty-five
- 1999 = nineteen ninety-nine
Time Expressions
General time words:
- today = this day
- tomorrow = the next day
- yesterday = the day before today
- now = at this moment
- soon = in a short time
- later = after now
- earlier = before now
This, next, last:
- this week = the current week
- next week = the week after this one
- last week = the week before this one
- this Monday = Monday of this week
- next Monday = Monday of next week
- last Monday = Monday of last week
Prepositions with Time
Use AT for:
- Clock times: at 7 o'clock, at 3:30
- Specific times: at noon, at midnight, at night
- Meals: at breakfast, at lunch
Use ON for:
- Days: on Monday, on Friday
- Dates: on 15th March, on my birthday
- Parts of days with days: on Monday morning
Use IN for:
- Months: in January, in December
- Years: in 2024, in 1990
- Seasons: in summer, in winter
- Parts of the day: in the morning, in the evening
Practice Examples
Complete sentences:
- The meeting is at 10 o'clock on Monday morning.
- My birthday is on 5th June.
- I was born in 1995.
- The shop opens at 9 AM.
- I go to the gym on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
- The course starts in September.
- We usually have lunch at 1 PM.
- I'll see you at the weekend.
Common Questions and Answers
Q: What time is it?
A: It's half past three. / It's 3:30.
Q: What day is it today?
A: It's Tuesday.
Q: What's the date today?
A: It's the 15th of March. / It's March 15th.
Q: When is your birthday?
A: It's on 20th May. / May 20th.
Q: What time does the train leave?
A: At quarter past six. / At 6:15.
Practice Tip
Every day, practice saying:
- Today is [day], the [date] of [month], [year].
- The time is [time].
For example: "Today is Monday, the 15th of January, 2024. The time is half past three."
This will help you remember numbers, days, and dates naturally!
