O'clock and half past — review

Before we move on to quarter hours, let's quickly review what you learned in 1st grade.

O'clock

It's o'clock when the minute hand stands exactly on 12.

• Hour hand on 3 → it's 3:00 ("three o'clock").
• Hour hand on 5 → it's 5:00.
• Hour hand on 9 → it's 9:00.

Rule: when the minute hand is on 12, just read the number the hour hand points to — that's the full time.

Half past

It's half past when the minute hand stands exactly on 6 (straight down).

• 3:30 — "half past three".
• 5:30 — "half past five".
• 7:30 — "half past seven".

Watch out — the hour hand has moved! At 3:30 it's no longer exactly on 3 — it sits between 3 and 4, roughly halfway across.

A trick for spotting it

• Minute hand at the top (12) = o'clock.
• Minute hand at the bottom (6) = half past.
• Minute hand on the right (3) = quarter past — next article.
• Minute hand on the left (9) = quarter to — also next.

Try it yourself

• What's 7:00? → seven o'clock.
• What's 7:30? → half past seven.
• What's 12:00? → twelve o'clock or noon/midnight.
• What's 12:30? → half past twelve.

Summary

• O'clock = minute hand on 12. Read the hour hand's number.
• Half past = minute hand on 6. Hour hand sits between two numbers.
• For half past in English we say "half past [the hour you've just gone past]" (3:30 = "half past three").