Lesson 39 · about 5 minutes

O'clock and half past

~ ji · han · ichiji · niji · sanji · yoji · goji · rokuji · shichiji · hachiji · kuji · juuji · juuichiji · juuniji

〜じ・はん・いちじ・にじ・さんじ・よじ・ごじ・ろくじ・しちじ・はちじ・くじ・じゅうじ・じゅういちじ・じゅうにじ

You'll learn clock talk for trains: o'clock and half past.

The pattern

なんじ? → 〜じ / 〜じはん.

RomajiJapaneseReadingMeaning
~ ji〜じ〜じo'clock (attach after the hour number)
hanはんはんhalf past
ichijiいちじいちじ1:00
nijiにじにじ2:00
sanjiさんじさんじ3:00
yojiよじよじ4:00
gojiごじごじ5:00
rokujiろくじろくじ6:00
shichijiしちじしちじ7:00
hachijiはちじはちじ8:00
kujiくじくじ9:00
juujiじゅうじじゅうじ10:00
juuichijiじゅういちじじゅういちじ11:00
juunijiじゅうにじじゅうにじ12:00

How they differ

Ask the time: 「いま なんじ ですか?」(ima nanji desu ka?): What time is it now?

Answer with hour + じ, or hour + じ + はん:

「ごじ です。」(goji desu): It's 5:00.

「くじはん です。」(kujihan desu): It's 9:30.

Special readings to memorize as wholes (not よんじ / ななじ / きゅうじ here):

4:00 → よじ

7:00 → しちじ

9:00 → くじ

For train boards, reading the hour and spotting はん gets you on the right departure. Full "minutes" come later.

Clock stickers: number + じ = o'clock. Add はん = :30. Train line: 「なんじ?」→ answer with じ or じはん.

One line: なんじ? → 〜じ / 〜じはん.

Next: Counting things and people: ひとつ〜とお and ひとり / ふたり (hitotsu–too / hitori / futari).

See it in a sentence

  1. ima nanji desu ka?

    いま なんじ ですか?

    What time is it now? (polite)

  2. sanji desu

    さんじ です。

    It's 3:00. (polite)

  3. kujihan desu

    くじはん です。

    It's 9:30. (polite)

  4. shichiji no densha desu

    しちじ の でんしゃ です。

    It's the 7:00 train. (polite)

  5. yoji ni ikimasu

    よじ に いきます。

    I'll go at 4:00. (polite)

Watch out

じ (ji) = o'clock marker / はん (han) = half past (:30) よじ · しちじ · くじ = 4:00 / 7:00 / 9:00 — special hour readings いつ (itsu) = when (broad) / なんじ (nanji) = what time (clock)

Try it

  1. In your next story, find じ or はん on a clock or train line. Say the time out loud in Japanese (〜じ or 〜じはん).

    Check against the lesson cluster and say it out loud.