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a.m. or p.m.

 
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dido4



Joined: 23 Dec 2005
Posts: 277

PostPosted: Thu Dec 25, 2008 10:39 pm    Post subject: a.m. or p.m. Reply with quote

Please. I do not know the precise time.


1.twelve p.m. right?
Is it twelve a.m. or p.m. or twelve noon or twelve midnight?

2.in the morning: From what time to what time?
in the afternoon: From what time to what time?
in the evening: From what time to what time?
at night: From what time to what time?

3. Others :midnight, 2,3 hours after midnight?
How to say or express time durning a day?



Thank you
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CP



Joined: 12 Jun 2006
Posts: 2875
Location: California

PostPosted: Fri Dec 26, 2008 4:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Here is how I learned it:

Midnight is called 12:00 a.m., the first instant of the morning. The morning and daytime last from 12:00:00 through 11:59:59 a.m., but at noon, we come to 12:00 p.m., the first instant of the afternoon. That goes on through 12:59:59 p.m.

To eliminate doubt when dealing with 12:00, you can specify that it is midnight or noon; or can use a 24-hour clock, in which case midnight is 24:00, and the next minute is 00:01; or can change the time by a minute. For example, "This lease expires at 12:01 a.m. on January 1, 2010."

In the "wee hours of the morning," 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, we say 1 in the morning, 2 in the morning, etc., or we talk about late night, 1:00 or 2:00 at night. When it is daytime, we say 7, 8, 9, etc., in the morning; 1, 2, 3, 4 in the afternoon; 5, 6, 7, or so in the evening, 8, 9, etc. at night.

Often the context makes it clear. If your friend asks what time it is, and you are near each other, he or she will know that answering 4:30 means 4:30 in the afternoon or 4:30 in the morning. If your friend is in a faraway land and is asking you over the telephone, you should tell him or her the time more precisely.
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