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Dutch Time

Klokkijken · Over/Voor · Prepositions of Time

kwart over
half acht
om tien uur
op maandag
bolt"Half" looks forward!

Telling time (Klokkijken) in Dutch can break English speakers' brains. The biggest rule to remember is that "half" looks toward the NEXT hour. "Half acht" (half 8) means 7:30. You are saying "it is halfway to 8". Additionally, the minute ranges from 20-40 are read relative to the half-hour, not the full hour.

1. The Clock (Klokkijken)
TimeDutch PhraseLiteral meaning
7:00zeven uurseven hour
7:10tien over zeventen past seven
7:15kwart over zevenquarter past seven
7:30half achthalf (towards) eight
7:45kwart voor achtquarter to eight
7:50tien voor achtten to eight
warning The difficult 20 / 40 minutes

Dutch reads minutes close to the half-hour relative to the half-hour itself.
7:20 = tien voor half acht (ten minutes before half 8)
7:40 = tien over half acht (ten minutes past half 8)

2. Time Prepositions (om, op, in)

Just like English uses "at", "on", and "in", Dutch has strict prepositions for different date formats.

PrepositionWhen to use itExamples
om Exact clock times om 8 uur (at 8 o'clock)
om half drie (at 2:30)
op Days of the week & specific dates op maandag (on Monday)
op 5 mei (on May 5th)
in Months, Years, Seasons, generic times in juli (in July)
in de winter (in the winter)
in de ochtend (in the morning)
3. Asking the time
Hoe laat is het? How late is it? (What time is it?)
Hoe laat begint de film? What time does the movie start?
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