Telling time in French isn’t just about memorising ‘il est une heure’ and hoping for the best. You need the right words and patterns to avoid showing up late or mixing up your rendezvous. This list hands you around 44 practical time‑telling expressions that cover everything from the simple o’clock hours to the trickier half‑past and quarter‑to forms.
Each entry gives you a straightforward meaning and a natural example sentence, so you can see exactly how the phrase behaves in a real French sentence – no guesswork, just vocabulary you’ll use when you glance at a clock or make plans. We’ve skipped the dusty textbook filler and kept only the practical bits that show up in daily life.
Ready to make the clock a little less mysterious? Scroll to the bottom of the article for the free printable tell time in French vocabulary list PDF and the free downloadable printable tell time in French flashcards, so you can practice saying the time like a pro.
Use this list as a starting point, then keep going in the Yak Yacker French section for more words, phrases, and study-friendly reference pages.
Quick Quiz
Think you’ve got these time expressions locked in? Take the quick quiz below and see which ones need a second glance.
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Browse the Full List
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| impair | odd |
| ji | jay |
| ku | cue |
| l’heure | luhr |
| lâ | laa |
| lente | nit |
| Léon | Leo |
| lessive | lye |
| mendier | beg |
| MIA | PAM |
| midi | mee-dee |
| mina | Gen |
| minuit | mee-nwee |
| moins le quart | mwan luh kar |
| na | ner |
| nonne | nun |
| PDG | CEO |
| PER | PEX |
| pile | peel |
| pingouin | auk |
| pois | pea |
| pourriture | rot |
| Quelle heure est-il ? | kel uhr ay teel |
| rajouter | add |
| rame | oar |
Free Tell Time in French Vocabulary List PDF and Flashcards
Grab the purple tell time in French vocabulary list button for your 100% free, no-signup PDF, then use the teal tell time in French flashcards button for easy practice anytime. Both downloads are made to help you learn fast, with zero fuss and plenty of clock-watching confidence.
