Asking for the time is a fundamental skill in any language, and Japanese is no exception. Whether you’re navigating daily activities, scheduling appointments, or simply making conversation, knowing how to ask “What time is it?” is essential. In this guide, we’ll cover the phrase in Japanese, along with useful vocabulary and tips for telling time. Let’s get started and empower your communication skills in Japanese!
What time・何時・nan ji
If you don’t know how to count in Japanese, here is a list:
| O’clock (ji) | Minute (fun・pun) | ||
| 1じ | ichi ji | 1ぷん | ippun |
| 2じ | ni ji | 2ふん | ni fun |
| 3じ | san ji | 3ふん | san pun |
| 4じ | yo ji | 4ふん | yon pun |
| 5じ | go ji | 5ふん | go fun |
| 6じ | roku ji | 6ぷん | roppun |
| 7じ | nana ji / shichi ji | 7ふん | nana fun |
| 8じ | hachi ji | 8ふん | happun |
| 9じ | ku ji | 9ふん | kyū fun |
| 10じ | jū ji | 10ぷん | juppun |
| 11じ | jū ichi ji | 15ふん | jū go fun |
| 12じ | jū ni ji | 30ぷん | san juppun, han |
| なんじ？ | nan ji | なんふん？ | nan fun |
If you want to say 5 PM in Japanese, it would be written as “ごご5じ” (gogo goji), which translates to PM5 in English.
| What time is it now? | いまなんじですか。 | ima nan ji desuka. |
| It’s (time) o’clock now. | いま (time) です。 | ima (time) desu. |
| AM・PM | ごぜん・ごご | gozen・gogo |
| 5PM | ごご5じ | gogo go ji |
| What time is it in (place)? | (place) はいまなんじですか。 | (place) wa ima nan ji desuka. |
にほんはいまなんじですか (Nihon wa ima nanji desu ka)
English: What time is it in Japan now?
ごぜん１０じです (Gozen juuji desu)
English: It is 10 AM.
Time-related vocabulary
- おととい (おととい, ototoi) – the day before yesterday
- 昨日 (きのう, kinō) – yesterday
- 今日 (きょう, kyō) – today
- 明日 (あした, ashita) – tomorrow
- 明後日 (あさって, asatte) – the day after tomorrow
- 毎日 (まいにち, mainichi) – every day
- 毎朝 (まいあさ, maiasa) – every morning
- 毎晩 (まいばん, maiban) – every night
- 今朝 (けさ, kesa) – this morning
- 今晩 (こんばん, konban) – this evening / tonight
I wake up at in Japanese
| To wake up・To get up | おきます | oki masu |
| To sleep | ねます | ne masu |
| What time do you (verb)? | なんじに (verb) か。 | nan ji ni (verb) ka. |
| I (verb) at (time). | (time) に (verb)。 | (time) ni (verb). |
けさ、７じにおきました (kesa, shichiji ni okimashita)
English: This morning, I woke up at 7 o’clock.
まいばん１１じにねます (maiban, juuichi-ji ni nemasu)
English: I go to bed at 11 o’clock every night.
I work from ~ to in Japanese
| To work | はたらきます | hataraki masu |
| To study | べんきょうします | benkyō shimasu |
| From what time to what time do you (verb)? | なんじからなんじまで (verb) か。 | nan ji kara nan ji made (verb) ka. |
| I (verb) from (time) to (time). | (time) から (time) まで (verb)。 | (time) kara (time) made (verb). |
あした９じから５じまではたらきます (ashita ku-ji kara go-ji made hatarakimasu)
English: I will work from 9 o’clock to 5 o’clock tomorrow.
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