Podcast on Telling Time in English

Kapitoly

The Panic of 'Quarter To'

The Two Sides of the Clock

The 'Past' Zone

The 'To' Zone

Putting It All Together

A Different Path

Final Takeaways

Přepis

James: Imagine a student named Mark. He's supposed to meet his friend Anna for lunch. She texts him, 'See you at quarter to one!' Mark stares at his phone... and panics. He knows 'one o'clock', but what on earth is 'quarter to one'?

Ava: Oh, that's such a common moment of confusion! He looks at his digital watch, it says 12:45. Is that it? He’s not sure, and now he’s worried he’ll be late just because of a weird phrase.

James: It feels like a secret code, but it doesn't have to be. And we're going to crack that code today. This is Studyfi Podcast.

Ava: That's right. The first thing to understand is that we often think of an analog clock face as having two halves. The right side and the left side.

James: Okay, so from the 12 at the top down to the 6 at the bottom... that's one side. And from the 6 back up to the 12 is the other side?

Ava: Exactly. The right side, for the first 30 minutes of any hour, uses the word 'past'. The left side, for the last 30 minutes, uses the word 'to'.

James: 'Past' and 'to'. That's the main rule?

Ava: That's the core concept. It's all about how many minutes have gone *past* the hour, or how many minutes are left *to* get to the next hour. Simple as that.

James: Alright, let's start with the 'past' side then. The first 30 minutes. What's the easiest one?

Ava: The easiest is right at the top: 'o'clock'. When the minute hand is on the 12, it's a new hour. So, 2:00 is 'two o'clock'. 7:00 is 'seven o'clock'.

James: Got it. Now, let's say the minute hand moves to the 2. That's ten minutes later. So, 4:10 would be...?

Ava: You got it. It's 'ten past four'. You say the minutes first, then 'past', then the hour you just left. So 1:25 is 'twenty-five past one'.

James: Okay, that makes sense. Minutes first, then 'past', then the hour. So what's so special about 15 minutes past?

Ava: Ah, that's 'a quarter past'. A clock face is a circle, and 15 minutes is one-quarter of the way around it. So 6:15 is 'a quarter past six'.

James: A quarter! Like a quarter of a pizza. That makes it easy to remember.

Ava: Exactly! And what's half a pizza?

James: That would be 30 minutes, which is when the big hand is on the 6. So 5:30 is 'half past five'.

Ava: You're a natural! So to recap the 'past' side: we use 'o'clock', then count the minutes 'past' the hour, with special names for 'a quarter past' and 'half past'.

James: Okay, my brain is warmed up. Let's tackle the other side of the clock—the 'to' zone. This is from minute 31 to 59.

Ava: This is where it gets a little tricky, but the logic is the same. Instead of counting how many minutes have passed, you count how many minutes are left *until* the next hour.

James: Hmm, okay. So you're looking forward, not backward. Give me an example.

Ava: Let's take 9:40. You're no longer thinking about 9 o'clock. You're thinking about 10 o'clock. How many minutes until 10?

James: From 40 to 60... that's 20 minutes.

Ava: Precisely! So 9:40 is 'twenty to ten'. See? Minutes first, then 'to', then the *next* hour.

James: Ah, that's the key. You round up to the next hour. So 6:55 isn't related to six anymore... it's 'five to seven'.

Ava: You've got it! It's five minutes until it becomes seven o'clock.

James: And what about our friend Mark's problem? 12:45. Using this rule, there are 15 minutes left until 1 o'clock.

Ava: And what do we call 15 minutes?

James: A quarter! So it's 'a quarter to one'. Mark could've made it to lunch on time!

Ava: He could have! That's the whole system. The right side is 'past', the left side is 'to'.

James: Now, let's look at that dialogue from the learning material between Anna and Mark. Anna asks, 'What time is it now?' and Mark says, 'It's 8:15 a.m.'

Ava: He could have also said, 'It's a quarter past eight.' Both are correct, but 'quarter past' is very common in conversation. And notice the 'a.m.'?

James: Right! We use 'a.m.' for the morning, from midnight until noon, and 'p.m.' for the afternoon and evening, from noon until midnight.

Ava: Exactly. The dialogue continues: 'My English class starts at 8:30 a.m.' Notice she uses the word 'at'. We use 'at' to talk about the time of a specific event.

James: So, 'the movie starts *at* nine o'clock', but if someone asks for the time right now, I'd say '*It's* half past four'.

Ava: Perfect distinction. 'At' for events, 'It's' for the current time. In the dialogue, they agree to meet for lunch *at* 1:15 p.m. or 'a quarter past one'.

James: They really used all the concepts we just talked about. Let's do a quick lightning round. I'll give you a digital time, you give me the phrase. Ready?

Ava: Let's do it!

James: 3:20.

Ava: Twenty past three.

James: 10:50.

Ava: Ten to eleven.

James: 11:30.

Ava: Half past eleven.

James: 2:45.

Ava: A quarter to three. See? Once you know the two-sided rule, it's not a secret code at all. It's just a different way of looking at the clock.

James: I think our friend Mark would agree. Hopefully, he's enjoying his lunch.

James: Alright, that covers the big universities. But for our final topic, let's look at a different kind of institution.

Ava: Absolutely. I want to highlight the Instituto de Educación Superior Tecnológico Divina Misericordia, or DIVINA for short.

James: Whoa, that's a mouthful! So what makes DIVINA special?

Ava: It’s a Higher Technological Education Institute. Think of it as super-focused, hands-on training for specific careers. It's less about abstract theory and more about job-readiness.

James: So for a student who knows exactly what career they want, this is a more direct path?

Ava: Precisely. It’s about targeted education to get you into the workforce quickly and effectively. It’s a fantastic alternative for many.

James: Great. So, to recap everything we've talked about today... from massive universities to specialized institutes like DIVINA, the key is finding the right fit for *you*.

Ava: That's the most important takeaway. Do your research, know your goals, and don't be afraid to look beyond the traditional path.

James: Wonderful advice. That’s all for this episode of the Studyfi Podcast. Thanks for joining us, Ava.

Ava: My pleasure, James.

James: And thank you for listening. We'll see you next time!