Time Talk: Telling the Time and Describing Your Daily Schedule in English (A1)

Do you ever freeze when someone asks, “What time is it?” Or want to say your daily routine, but don’t know the right words? Today, you’ll learn how to tell the time and talk about your schedule in clear, simple English. We’ll practice right away with short exercises so you can use these phrases in real life.

How to say the time

There are two common ways to say the time:

  1. Digital style (easy at A1): “It’s three twenty.” “It’s seven thirty.”
  2. Traditional phrases: “o’clock,” “half past,” “quarter past,” “quarter to.”

Use “o’clock” only for exact hours: “It’s five o’clock.” Don’t add minutes after “o’clock.”

English
It’s six o’clock.
6:00
English
It’s quarter past two.
2:15
English
It’s half past seven.
7:30

It’s o’clock.

🧠 Match the time

Time words and prepositions

In English, we often use “at,” “in,” and “on” with time.

I get up in 7 o’clock. → I get up at 7 o’clock. Use “at” for exact clock times.

I have lunch noon.

Daily routine vocabulary

Here are useful verbs and phrases for your schedule.

get up
to leave your bed in the morning
phrasal verb
I get up at seven.
wake up and leave bed
have breakfast
to eat breakfast
verb phrase
I have breakfast at seven thirty.
eat breakfast
go to work
to travel to your workplace
verb phrase
I go to work at eight.
travel to work
start (work/class)
to begin
verb
She starts class at nine.
begin
finish (work/class)
to end
verb
We finish work at five.
end
go home
to return to your house
verb phrase
I go home at six.
return home
go to bed
to lie in bed to sleep
verb phrase
He goes to bed at ten.
lie down to sleep
o’clock
exact hour
adverb
It’s seven o’clock.
7:00
o’ contraction of “of” clock noun
start present simple
Pronoun Conjugation
I start
you start
he/she/it starts
we start
you (plural) start
they start
She start work at 9. → She starts work at 9. Add -s for he/she/it in the present simple.
🔠 Put the words in order

Begin with the subject (I).

Quick practice: say your times

  • “I get up at ___.” (6:30? 7?)
  • “I start work at ___.” (9?)
  • “I go to bed at ___.” (10?) Say them out loud. Focus on “at + time.”

I go to bed at o’clock.

We have dinner at

Mini conversation: ask about schedules

Put the lines in a natural order.

💬 Reorder the chat

Cultural notes

  • In many English-speaking places, people say “half past three” for 3:30. In some regions (especially UK informal speech), you may hear “half three” meaning 3:30. At A1, use “half past three” — it’s clearer and standard.
  • Don’t combine minutes with “o’clock.” Say “seven thirty,” not “seven thirty o’clock.”
  • “Noon” = 12:00 PM; “midnight” = 12:00 AM.
🧠 Check your understanding

Wrap-up practice

  • Tell the time: Look at a clock. Say three times: “It’s ___.” Try one with “quarter past,” one with “half past,” one with “quarter to.”
  • Describe your day: “I get up at ___ in the morning. I start work at ___. I have lunch at ___. I go home at ___. I go to bed at ___.”

You’ve got this! With “at + time,” basic time phrases, and simple present verbs, you can understand and explain your daily schedule. Keep speaking out loud — your fluency grows with every minute!