Exact time clock1/30/2024 ![]() So 11.20 in the morning is 11.20 am (eleven twenty or twenty past eleven) Often we write these shortenings without the full stops in between the letters, so they are often written in common usage as ‘am’ and ‘pm’. Hours after noon are called ‘p.m.’ (pronounced pee-em), which comes from the Lain ‘post meridiem’, which means after midday. Hours before noon are called ‘a.m.’ (pronounced ay-em), which comes from the Lain ‘ante meridiem’, which means before midday. In the 12 hour clock, we need a way to differentiate between morning and evening, so we use the letter ‘am’ and ‘pm’ to show whether 11.20 is in the morning or at night. One lasts from midnight to noon and the second half lasts from noon to midnight. The 12 hour clock splits the day into two 12 hour sections. When we tell the time in English, we can use the 12 hour clock or the 24 hour clock. Quarter to four (3.45) – or three forty-five.Twenty-five to four (3.35) – on BBC radio, the presenters often say ‘five-and-twenty-to’ (or five-and-twenty-past’) instead of twenty-five-to/past. ![]() Even a regular family meal is considered a social occasion after a hard day's work.For any minute beyond the half hour, use the word ‘to’ before the next o’clock. If we're invited to Italian friends' houses, or there's a local 'festa', the meal won't start until around 9.30pm and will last for several hours. Except in tourist areas, the evening meal in Italy never starts before 7.30 pm.Or at least, that's the theory (and from our experience it does, surprisingly, seem to work that way!). It won't keep you awake, it will settle your digestion for a better night's sleep. ![]()
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