Help with Telling Time

Question

¿Cómo se dice "it is 2:42"? ¿Es esto todo dice en español? ¿Es "son las dos y cuarenta y dos"'

Answer 1

¿Es "son las dos y cuarenta y dos"?
This is gramatically right, but it will not sound natural. I would say "son las tres menos veinte" (rounding it to 2:40).

Answer 2

More than half an hour you just got to the "to" mode. By example 8:35 would be "nueve menos veinticinco". 8:30 is "ocho y media". Less than half of an hour you use the "past" mode. By example 8:20 is said "ocho y veinte".

Mark Baker said:

James Santiago said:

Mark Baker said:

Is there a specic reason why the 'a' is dropped from cuarentidos......and does the same apply for cincuenta y dos becomes cincuentidos.

It's just a contraction.See this: http://www.top-tour-of-spain.com/1-100-Numbers-In-Spanish.html

Many Thanks.Can I also ask your opinion on how the Spanish would say 8.45 since the lesson on 'Time' covered quarter past and half past but did not mention 'a quarter to'. The French would say Neuf heures moins le quart so I guess the Spanish would say something similar...top of the hour minus a quarter. What is the standard convention please?

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Answer 3

Mark Baker said:

Of course, we say this in English too. It's a quarter 'til nine.

Answer 4

James Santiago said:

Mark Baker said:

Is there a specic reason why the 'a' is dropped from cuarentidos......and does the same apply for cincuenta y dos becomes cincuentidos.

It's just a contraction.See this: http://www.top-tour-of-spain.com/1-100-Numbers-In-Spanish.html

Many Thanks.

Can I also ask your opinion on how the Spanish would say 8.45 since the lesson on 'Time' covered quarter past and half past but did not mention 'a quarter to'. The French would say Neuf heures moins le quart so I guess the Spanish would say something similar...top of the hour minus a quarter. What is the standard convention please'

Answer 5

Mucho Gracias!! I was wondering why I couldn´t find it in any of the books I have. But nothing just stated that it should rounded off.

Answer 6

ztaylor said:

Mucho Gracias!! I was wondering why I couldn´t find it in any of the books I have. But nothing just stated that it should rounded off.

Z, Guillermo is only saying what you already know from English. That is, we don't usually say the time so precisely. If it's 3:16 on my watch and I am asked the time, I'll probably say 3:15 or a quarter past three. However, there is nothing at all wrong with the way you said the time. Note that it can also be written as "son las dos y cuarentidos

Answer 7

Fantastico! Sometime I get so wrapped up in learning I make it harder than it really is. What would we do without you guys to help us out.

Answer 8

James Santiago said:

lazarus1907 said:

Numbers are written in one word only up to 29; after 30 you have to say "treinta y cinco".

All I know is that I do see the contracted form fairly often, and sometimes in contexts where I would be surprised if it were just poor education. For example, there is a luxury hotel in Panama called La Treinticinco. And here is an excerpt of Peruvian law:ARTICULO 263º.- Será reprimido con pena privativa de libertad no menor de uno ni mayor de cuatro años y con ciento ochenta a trescientos sesenticinco días-multa, el que cometa delito de contrabando, bajo las siguientes modalidades:And here is a quote from a judicial gazette: Que de acuerdo a la norma prevista en el artículo ochenticinco del Código Civil.Anyway, I see these written contractions, and just thought the OP might like to be aware that they are in use.

You guys always do this!.....It's going to take all night for a non spanish speaker to look up in the dictionary what your quotation says. lol
I also use this website: http://www.studyspanish.com/lessons/cardnum3.htm..ad this is what they say:
1. uno
2. dos
3. tres
4. cuatro
5. cinco
6. seis
7. siete
8. ocho
9. nueve
10. diez
11. once
12. doce
13. trece
14. catorce
15. quince
16. dieciséis
17. diecisiete
18. dieciocho
19. diecinueve
20. veinte
21. veintiuno
22. veintidós
23. veintitrés
24. veinticuatro
25. veinticinco
26. veintiséis
27. veintisiete
28. veintiocho
29. veintinueve
30. treinta

The next step is to learn to count by 10s all the way to 100:

1. diez
2. veinte
3. treinta
4. cuarenta
5. cincuenta
6. sesenta
7. setenta
8. ochenta
9. noventa
10. cien

Now, see how easy it is to fill in the gaps:

1. treinta y uno
2. treinta y dos
3. treinta y tres
4. treinta y cuatro
5. treinta y cinco
6. treinta y seis
7. treinta y siete
8. treinta y ocho
9. treinta y nueve
10. cuarenta
11. cuarenta y uno
12. cuarenta y dos
    etc.

This pattern continues all the way to 100:

1. cincuenta y tres
2. cincuenta y cuatro
3. sesenta y cinco
4. sesenta y seis
5. setenta y ocho
6. ochenta y ocho
7. noventa y nueve
   etc.

From 101-199, use "ciento":

ciento uno
ciento dos
ciento tres
ciento sesenta y uno
ciento sesenta y dos
etc.

Notice that "y" is used only in numbers 31-99 (and 131-199, 231-299, 331-399, etc.) and it is not used to separate hundreds from tens.

Correct:
ciento ochenta y nueve

Incorrect:
ciento y ochenta y nueve

To get to 1000, all of the rules you have learned so far continue to apply. All you need to do now is learn to count by 100s all the way to 1000, and that is quite easy:

1. cien
2. doscientos
3. trescientos
4. cuatrocientos
5. quinientos
6. seiscientos
7. setecientos
8. ochocientos
9. novecientos
10. mil

Here are some more examples:

1. ciento cuarenta y dos
2. trescientos setenta y cinco
3. seiscientos doce
4. novecientos siete
5. novecientos noventa y nueve

Remember from an earlier lesson, there is a masculine and a feminine form for the number one:

un libro
one book
una pluma
one pen

This is also true for the numbers 200, 300, 400, etc.

doscientos libros
doscientas plumas

cuatrocientos señores
cuatrocientas señoras

When there is exactly 100 of something, and the number is used with the noun, use the shortened form "cien."

cien dólares
cien gatas
cien perros
cien pesetas

Finally, in Spanish a period is used to indicate thousands, and a comma is used as a decimal point.

English
1,543.67

Spanish
1.543,67

Answer 9

As you say sometimes:

Google hits for "sesenticinco": 2570
Google hits for "sesenta y cinco": 688,000

That's 0.37% for sesenticinco.

The Peruvian Academy of Spanish follows the convention I stated above, but anyway, if you want to see things written against what the 22 Academies of Spanish suggests, nothing better than the Laws written in many provinces of Spain, and especially mine.

Answer 10

lazarus1907 said:

Numbers are written in one word only up to 29; after 30 you have to say "treinta y cinco".

All I know is that I do see the contracted form fairly often, and sometimes in contexts where I would be surprised if it were just poor education. For example, there is a luxury hotel in Panama called La Treinticinco. And here is an excerpt of Peruvian law:

ARTICULO 263º.- Será reprimido con pena privativa de libertad no menor de uno ni mayor de cuatro años y con ciento ochenta a trescientos sesenticinco días-multa, el que cometa delito de contrabando, bajo las siguientes modalidades:

And here is a quote from a judicial gazette: Que de acuerdo a la norma prevista en el artículo ochenticinco del Código Civil.

Anyway, I see these written contractions, and just thought the OP might like to be aware that they are in use.

Answer 11

Numbers are written in one word only up to 29; after 30 you have to say "treinta y cinco".

Natasha said:

I don't know how to find if the RAE has a page on how to say numbers. I actually wondered how to say the year in a date, now that it is the new millenium. 2 octubre 2008

Is it

dos octubre dos mil ocho?

Normally we say "2 de octubre del dos mil ocho", or, less frequently, and more in written Spanish, "2 de octubre de 2008".

Answer 12

I found this in the RAE dictionary.

veinticinco.

1. adj. Veinte y cinco.

2. adj. Vigésimo quinto. Número veinticinco. Año veinticinco. Apl. a los días del mes, u. t. c. s. El veinticinco de agosto

3. m. Conjunto de signos o cifras con que se representa el número veinticinco.

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Aviso

La palabra treinticinco no está en el Diccionario.

I don't know how to find if the RAE has a page on how to say numbers. I actually wondered how to say the year in a date, now that it is the new millenium.

2 octubre 2008
Is it
dos octubre dos mil ocho'

Answer 13

I guess we could contact the Real Academia Espanola to find out what is accepted.

Sounds like a great idea. Please post what you learn.

Answer 14

James Santiago said:

Heidi wrote: I believe it is cuarenta y dos. I think only veinte becomes veintiuno, dos, etc. Treinta, cuarenta, cincuenta all end in a.

That is incorrect. Please see the link I provided. Both forms, short and long, are correct for all numbers up to 99 (and beyond, of course).

I learned that the spelling is as Heidi says, but that speakers "contract" the higher numbers also when saying them.

Answer 15

I guess we could contact the Real Academia Espanola to find out what is accepted.

James Santiago said:

That site says the higher numbers "are not usually done as contractions," but searching for these contractions will show that they are indeed used. I wasn't telling ztaylor to use the contraction, but was pointing out that he may see the contracted form sometimes.

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