In Hong Kong, knowing the time 時間 (si4 gaan3) and date 日期 (jat6 kei4) in Cantonese can be helpful in different situations. It can be used to book flights, make restaurant reservations, observe shop, mall, and museum hours, and more.
Telling time and date in the Cantonese language is similar to how it’s done in the English Language. So, all you have to do is to learn Cantonese vocabulary. This blog is your best guide to learning how to tell time and date in Cantonese!
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How To Tell Time And Date In Cantonese?
Knowing how to tell time and date in Cantonese will help you take note of important dates to remember, like your flight, important celebrations and Cantonese holidays, and even the birthdays of your friends and family. Telling date and time in Cantonese is pretty similar to how it is done in English. Start by reading the hour, then the minute, and then the time of the day. However, there are some differences in telling the date. Here are a few ways of telling date and time in Cantonese.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 年 | nin4 |
| Month | 月 | yut6 |
| Date | 日 | jat6 |
| Week | 星期 | sing1 kei4 |
| Time | 時間 | si4 gaan1 |
| Hour | 點 | dim2 |
| Minute | 分鐘 | fan1 zung1 |
| Daytime | 白天 | baak6 tin1 |
| Night | 夜晚 | je6 maan5 |
How To Tell Time In Cantonese
Time in cantonese is 時間 (si4 gaan1). An old Chinese saying, “一寸光陰一寸金“( jat1 cyun3 gwong1 jam1 jat1 cyun3 gam1), highlights how people value time, especially in big cities like Hong Kong. So knowing how to tell time is very important and shows how respectful you are!
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Hours | 點 | dim2 |
| Minutes | 分鐘 | fan1 zung1 |
| Quarters | 十五分鐘 | sap6 ng5 fan1 zung1 |
| Quarter past | 一個字 | jat1 go3 zi6 |
| Half past | 半個鐘 | bun3 go3 zung1 |
| Quarter to | 三個字 | saam1 go3 zi6 |
Hours: 點 (dim2)
In Cantonese, hours are 點 (dim2). Just like how you say 1 o’clock, you say the hourly number + 點(dim2), like “1 點, 2點, 3點…12點”.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 o’clock | 點 | jat1 dim2 |
| 2 o’clock | 兩點 | loeng5 dim2 |
| 3 o’clock | 三點 | saam1 dim2 |
| 4 o’clock | 四點 | sei3 dim2 |
| 5 o’clock | 五點 | ng5 dim2 |
| 6 o’clock | 六點 | luk6 dim2 |
| 7 o’clock | 七點 | cat1 dim2 |
| 8 o’clock | 八點 | baat3 dim2 |
| 9 o’clock | 九點 | gau2 dim2 |
| 10 o’clock | 十點 | sap6 dim2 |
| 11 o’clock | 十一點 | sap6 jat1 dim2 |
| 12 o’clock | 十二點 | sap6 ji6 dim2 |
Minutes: 分鐘 (fan1 zung1)
After learning the hour, let us learn how to tell the minutes in Cantonese. To express hours and minutes, say the hour, then add the number (1-59) to the Chinese character 分 (fan1).
Here are some examples:
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| 1:05 | 點零五分 | jat1 dim2 ling4 ng5 fan1 |
| 4:28 | 四點二十八分 | sei3 dim2 ji6 sap6 baat3 fan1 |
| 8:44 | 八點四十四分 | baat3 dim2 sei3 sap6 sei3 fan1 |
| 11:51 | 十一點五十一分 | sap6 jat1 dim2 ng5 sap6 jat1 fan1 |
| 12:59 | 十二點五十九分 | sap6 ji6 dim2 ng5 sap6 gau2 fan1 |
Quarters: 十五分鐘 (sap6 ng5 fan1 zung1)
Each quarter is 15 minutes. In Cantonese, you may hear 字(zi6) when it refers to quarter o’clock.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter past | 一個字 | jat1 go3 zi6 |
| Half past | 半個鐘 | bun3 go3 zung1 |
| Quarter to | 三個字 | saam1 go3 zi6 |
Time Of The Day
You should also know the different times of the day when you are learning about dates and times in Cantonese. You also encounter some of these terms in learning the Basic Greetings in Cantonese.
| Cantonese | ||
|---|---|---|
| morning | 朝早 | jiu1 jou2 |
| a.m. / morning (spoken language) | 上晝 | soeng6 zau3 |
| noon | 晏晝 | aan3 zau3 |
| afternoon | 下晝 | ha6 jau3 |
| p.m. / afternoon (spoken language) | 下晝 | haa6 zau3 |
| evening | 晚 | maan5 |
| daytime | 白天 | baak6 tin1 |
How To Tell Date In Cantonese
Some parts of the world tell the date in Month-Date-Year, while some go with Year-Month-Date. Today, we will start with year and month and then go to date! What you all need to do is learn how to say it in Cantonese. Here we go!
Year: 年 (nin4)
Giving the year in Cantonese is very interesting because, unlike in other languages, Cantonese reads each digit individually. For example, in the year 2021, when read in English, we would say (Two thousand twenty-one / Twenty twenty-one). But, for Cantonese numbers, you would say (Two, Zero, Two, One).
Here are some examples of years in Cantonese.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| The year 2019 | 二零一九年 | ji6 ling4 jat1 gau2 nin4 |
| The year 2020 | 二零j二零年 | ji6 ling4 ji6 ling4 |
| The year 2021 | 二零j二一年 | ji6 ling4 ji6 jat1 nin4 |
| The year 2022 | 二千零二十二 | ji6 cin1 ling4 ji6 sap6 ji6 |
| The year 2023 | 二千零二十三 | ji6 cin1 ling4 ji6 sap6 saam1 |
Month: 月 (yut6)
In Cantonese, the character 月 (yut6) is used for the word “month.” To state the month in Cantonese, add the number order of the month before 月 (yut6). For example, January is the 1st month in a year so, you would say jat1 (1st) yut6 (month). Check out the examples below for the Cantonese term for other months.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| January | 一月 | jat1 yut6 |
| February | 二月 | ji6 yut6 |
| March | 三月 | saam1 yut6 |
| April | 四月 | sei3 yut6 |
| May | 五月 | ng5 yut6 |
| June | 六月 | luk6 yut6 |
| July | 七月 | cat1 yut6 |
| August | 八月 | baat3 yut6 |
| September | 九月 | gau2 yut6 |
| October | 十月 | sap6 yut6 |
| November | 十一月 | sap6 jat1 yut6 |
| December | 十二月 | sap6 ji6 yut6 |
Day: 日 (jat6)
日 (jat6) is the Chinese character for “day.” So, if you want to express day in Cantonese, add the number in front of the Chinese character 日 (jat6). For example, if you are saying “8th of the month.” it is literally 8日（jat6).
The written and spoken forms of stating dates in Cantonese are different. Use the Chinese character 日 (jat6) for writing. Use the Chinese character 號 (hou6) for speaking.
Here are the 31 days in a month for you to learn how to tell date.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 一日 | jat1 jat6 |
| 2nd | 二日 | ji6 jat6 |
| 3rd | 三日 | saam1 jat6 |
| 4th | 四日 | sei3 jat6 |
| 5th | 五日 | ng5 jat6 |
| 6th | 六日 | luk6 jat6 |
| 7th | 七日 | cat1 jat6 |
| 8th | 八日 | baat3 jat6 |
| 9th | 九日 | gau2 jat6 |
| 10th | 十日 | sap6 jat6 |
| 11th | 十一日 | sap6 jat1 jat6 |
| 12th | 十二日 | sap6 ji6 jat6 |
| 13th | 十三日 | sap6 saam1 jat6 |
| 14th | 十四日 | sap6 sei3 jat6 |
| 15th | 十五日 | sap6 ng5 jat6 |
| 16th | 十六日 | sap6 luk6 jat6 |
| 17th | 十七日 | sap6 cat1 jat6 |
| 18th | 十八日 | sap6 baat3 jat6 |
| 19th | 十九日 | sap6 gau2 jat6 |
| 20th | 二十日 | ji6 sap6 jat6 |
| 21st | 二十一日 | ji6 sap6 jat1 jat6 |
| 22nd | 二十二日 | ji6 sap6 ji6 jat6 |
| 23rd | 二十三日 | ji6 sap6 saam1 jat6 |
| 24th | 二十四日 | ji6 sap6 sei3 jat6 |
| 25th | 二十五日 | ji6 sap6 ng5 jat6 |
| 26th | 二十六日 | ji6 sap6 luk6 jat6 |
| 27th | 二十七日 | ji6 sap6 cat1 jat6 |
| 28th | 二十八日 | ji6 sap6 baat3 jat6 |
| 29th | 二十九日 | ji6 sap6 gau2 jat6 |
| 30th | 三十日 | saam1 sap6 jat6 |
| 31st | 三十一日 | saam1 sap6 jat1 jat6 |
Days Of The Week In Cantonese
After learning the months of the year, you should also learn the days of the week. Here is the list of Cantonese days of the week.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 星期日 | sing1 kei4 jat6 |
| Monday | 星期 | sing1 kei4 jat1 |
| Tuesday | 星期二 | sing1 kei4 ji6 |
| Wednesday | 星期三 | sing1 kei4 saam1 |
| Thursday | 星期四 | sing1 kei4 sei3 |
| Friday | 星期五 | sing1 kei4 ng5 |
| Saturday | 星期六 | sing1 kei4 luk6 |
More Vocabularies Of Time And Date In Cantonese
Part of learning the date and time in Cantonese is expanding your vocabulary. Here is some vocabulary that you can add to your list.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| calendar | 日曆 | jat6 lik6 |
| every day | 每日 | mui5 yat6 |
| Week (casual) | 禮拜 | lai5 baai3 |
| Week (both formal and casual) | 星期 | sing1 kei4 |
| Weekend | 週末 | jau1 mut6 |
| Weekday | 平日 | ping4 yat6 |
| Date | 日期 | jat6 kei4 |
| Today (casual) | 今日 | gam1 yat6 |
| Today (formal) | 今天 | gam1 tin1m |
| Yesterday (casual) | 尋日 | cam4 jat6 |
| Yesterday (formal) | 昨天 | zok3 tin1 |
| Tomorrow (casual) | 聽日 | ting1 yat6 |
| Tomorrow (formal) | 明天 | ming4 tin1 |
| The day before yesterday | 前日 | cin4 jat6 |
| The day after tomorrow | 後日 | hau6 jat6 |
| next month | 下個月 | ha6 go3 yut6 |
| Leap year day | 閏年日 | jeon6 nin4 jat6 |
| a minute | 一分鐘 | yat1 fan1 zung1 |
| a second | 一秒 | yat1 miu5 |
| …quarter to | ⋯(-1)點九 | ⋯(-1)dim2 gau2 |
| .. half | ⋯點半 | ⋯dim2 bun3 |
| …quarter past | ⋯點三 | ⋯dim2 saam1 |
| an hour | 一個鐘 | yat1 go3 zung1 |
| now | 而家 | yi4 ga1 |
| until | 到 | dou3 |
| from | 由 | yau4 |
| before | 之前 | ji1 chin4 |
| after | 之後 | ji1 hau6 |
| meanwhile | 同時 | tung4 si4 |
| soon | 就嚟 | zau6 lai4 |
| almost | 就快 | zau6 faai3 |
| 24-hours | 廿四小時 | jaa6 sei3 siu2 si4 |
| next year | 出年 | ceot1 nin2 |
| last year | 舊年 | gau6 nin2 |
| light year | 光年 | gwong1 nin4 |
More Sentences Of Time And Date In Cantonese
Learning Cantonese and other languages will be easier when you practice a lot and use it in conversational Cantonese discussions with your friends. Below are some sentences about time and date in Cantonese that will help you master your skills in written and spoken form.
| Meaning | Cantonese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| May 31st is World No Smoking Day. | 五月三十一日是世界無煙日 | ng5 jyut6 saam1 sap6 jat1 jat6 si6 sai3 gaai3 mou4 jin1 jat6 |
| I swim every Monday. | 我 逢 星 期 一 去 游 水。 | ngo5 fung4 sing1 kei4 yat1 heui3 yau4 seui2。 |
| We learn to sing every weekend. | 我 哋 逢 周 末 去 學 唱 歌。 | ngo5 dei6 fung4 jau1 mut6 heui3 hok6 cheung3 go1。 |
| She goes shopping at the market every month. | 佢 每 個 月 都 去 街 市 買 嘢。 | keui5 mui5 go3 yut6 dou1 heui3 gaai1 si5 maai5 ye5。 |
| I walk to school every day. | 我 每 日 都 行 返 學。 | ngo5 mui5 yat6 dou1 haang4 faan1 hok6。 |
| Today is a holiday. | 今 日 係 假 期。 | gam1 yat6 hai6 ga3 kei4。 |
| New Year’s Day is on January 1st. | 元 旦 喺 一 月 一 日。 | yun4 daan3 hai2 yat1 yut6 yat1 yat6。 |
| December 31st is New Year’s Eve. | 十二月三十一日是除夕 | sap6 ji6 jyut6 saam1 sap6 jat1 jat6 si6 ceoi4 zik6 |
| Valentine’s Day is on February 14th. | 情 人 節 喺 二 月 十 四 日。 | ching4 yan4 jit3 hai2 yi6 yut6 sap6 sei3 yat6。- |
| Christmas is on December 25th. | 聖 誕 節 喺 十 二 月 二 十 五 日。 | sing3 daan3 jit3 hai2 sap6 yi6 yut6 yi6 sap6 ng5 yat6。 |
| We are getting married in June. | 我們在六月結婚 | ngo5 mun4 zoi6 luk6 jyut6 git3 fan1 |
| See you next year! | 下年見！ | haa6 nin2 gin3! |
| What time is it? | 幾點鐘? | gei2 dim2 zung1 |
| It is 7 a.m. | 而 家 朝 早 七 點。 | yi4 ga1 jiu1 jou2 chat1 dim2。 |
| It’s now 12 o’clock. | 而家十二點 | ji4 gaa1 sap6 ji6 dim2 |
Frequently Asked Questions About Time And Date In Cantonese
How Is The Date Written In Hong Kong?
In Hong Kong, the date is typically written in the day-month-year format, such as 31-10-2024 or 31 October 2024.
How Do You Say 2:55 P.M In Cantonese?
In Cantonese, you can say 2:55 P.M as 下午兩點五十五分 (Haa6 ng5 loeng5 dim2 ng5 sap6 ng5 fan1)
Which Calendar Does Hong Kong Use?
Like the rest of the world, Hong Kong primarily uses the Gregorian calendar for official, business, and everyday purposes. However, the Chinese lunar calendar is also widely recognized, especially for traditional holidays and cultural events.
It’s Time To Learn Cantonese! Use Ling Now!
Life is too short to limit yourself to learning another language. Your love for your own native language is irreplaceable. You have just learned about the date and time in Cantonese. Why not try to speak Cantonese as a hobby or a skill that you can use someday? I recommend you try the Ling app.
With the Ling app, you’re up to a good start. Do not waste any year, month, or day. Make it worth it!
