Telling Time and Date Expressions in Japanese
Mastering how to tell time and express dates is essential for daily life and scheduling in Japanese. This guide covers everything from hours and minutes to days of the week, months, and useful relative time expressions. Let's dive in!
Hours and Minutes
In Japanese, hours are expressed with the counter 時 (じ, ji), and minutes with 分 (ふん or ぷん, fun/pun). Pay attention to the pronunciation changes for minutes.
Tip: Use 午前 (ごぜん, gozen) for AM and 午後 (ごご, gogo) for PM when needed. For example, 午前9時 (gozen ku-ji) is 9 AM.
Days of the Week
The days of the week in Japanese all end with 曜日 (ようび, yōbi). Here's the complete list:
| Japanese | Romanization | English |
|---|---|---|
| 月曜日 | getsuyōbi | Monday |
| 火曜日 | kayōbi | Tuesday |
| 水曜日 | suiyōbi | Wednesday |
| 木曜日 | mokuyōbi | Thursday |
| 金曜日 | kin'yōbi | Friday |
| 土曜日 | doyōbi | Saturday |
| 日曜日 | nichiyōbi | Sunday |
Months of the Year
Months are straightforward: simply add 月 (がつ, gatsu) to the number (1-12). Note that April, July, and September have slight pronunciation changes.
- 一月 (いちがつ, ichi-gatsu) – January
- 二月 (にがつ, ni-gatsu) – February
- 三月 (さんがつ, san-gatsu) – March
- 四月 (しがつ, shi-gatsu) – April
- 五月 (ごがつ, go-gatsu) – May
- 六月 (ろくがつ, roku-gatsu) – June
- 七月 (しちがつ, shichi-gatsu) – July
- 八月 (はちがつ, hachi-gatsu) – August
- 九月 (くがつ, ku-gatsu) – September
- 十月 (じゅうがつ, jū-gatsu) – October
- 十一月 (じゅういちがつ, jūichi-gatsu) – November
- 十二月 (じゅうにがつ, jūni-gatsu) – December
Relative Time Words
These words are incredibly useful for talking about past, present, and future events without specific dates.
| Japanese | Romanization | English |
|---|---|---|
| 昨日 | kinō | yesterday |
| 今日 | kyō | today |
| 明日 | ashita | tomorrow |
| 一昨日 | ototoi | day before yesterday |
| 明後日 | asatte | day after tomorrow |
| 先週 | senshū | last week |
| 今週 | konshū | this week |
| 来週 | raishū | next week |
| 先月 | sengetsu | last month |
| 今月 | kongetsu | this month |
| 来月 | raigetsu | next month |
| 去年 | kyonen | last year |
| 今年 | kotoshi | this year |
| 来年 | rainen | next year |
Warning: Be careful with 明日 – it's usually read as ashita, but in formal contexts, it can be asu. Similarly, 今日 is kyō, not "konnichi" (which means "hello").
Duration Expressions
To express how long something takes or lasts, use time words with duration particles like 間 (かん, kan) for a period of time.
You can also use these with the particle で (de) to indicate a time limit, or with かかる (kakaru) to express how long something takes.
Tip: For approximate durations, add ぐらい (gurai) or ほど (hodo) after the time expression. For example, 一時間ぐらい (ichi-jikan gurai) means "about one hour."
Practice
Try translating these sentences into Japanese:
- The meeting is at 2:30 PM on Friday.
- I studied for two hours yesterday.
- She will come to Japan next month.
- We watched a movie for three hours.
Answers:
- 会議は金曜日の午後2時半です。 (Kaigi wa kin'yōbi no gogo ni-ji han desu.)
- 昨日、二時間勉強しました。 (Kinō, ni-jikan benkyō shimashita.)
- 彼女は来月日本に来ます。 (Kanojo wa raigetsu Nihon ni kimasu.)
- 私たちは三時間映画を見ました。 (Watashitachi wa san-jikan eiga o mimashita.)
Summary and Key Takeaways
- Use 時 (ji) for hours and 分 (fun/pun) for minutes.
- Days of the week end with 曜日 (yōbi).
- Months are numbers + 月 (gatsu).
- Memorize common relative time words like 昨日 (kinō), 今日 (kyō), and 明日 (ashita).
- Use 間 (kan) to express durations.
- Practice combining these with particles to form natural sentences.
With these expressions, you'll be able to schedule, plan, and talk about time confidently in Japanese. Keep practicing, and soon it will become second nature!