No, you cannot say "19 o'clock" in everyday English; it sounds unnatural because "o'clock" is used with the 12-hour clock, so you'd say "seven p.m.", "seven in the evening", or "19:00 (nineteen hundred)" in formal/military contexts, but never "nineteen o'clock". English speakers typically use "o'clock" only up to twelve, and even when using the 24-hour format, they'd say "nineteen hundred" or just "seven p.m.".
We only use 'o'clock' when we are telling time using the 12-hour clock so English speakers would never say '13 o'clock'.
Eight thirty (simple). Half past eight (neither simple nor clumsy). Thirty minutes past eight (clumsy).
For example, 8 o'clock AM is shown as 0800 in military and 8:00 in 24 hour time. 8 PM would be 2000 (military) and 20:00 (24 hour).
In addition, when writing the times 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, etc., it is perfectly acceptable to omit the zeroes and write 1 pm, 2 pm, instead. Finally, note that while in the US we use a 12-hour clock, some countries use a 24-hour clock, or military time.
It is a guater past nine = It is fifteen past nine ( 09:15 )
The "o" in "o'clock" is actually a contraction of the phrase "of the clock." In earlier times, when clocks were still a relatively new invention, people would specify the time by saying it was "3 of the clock" to differentiate it from other time-telling methods like sundials.
Military time uses a 24-hour format. Examples: If it's 6 hours after midnight, it's 6 a.m. in a.m./p.m. time and 0600 (or "oh-six hundred") in military time. If it's 7 hours after noon, it's 7 p.m. in a.m./p.m. time and 1900 (or "nineteen hundred") in military time.
03:09 p.m. in military format is 1509.
The times provided by these two bodies do not always concur with those provided by a clock. Hence there was a need to differentiate between the time provided "of the clock" (o'clock) and the time used by the vast majority of people in a given locality.
Military time is always written as four digits (hours and minutes) without a colon. For instance, 9:00 a.m. would be written as 0900. If the time is past noon, you simply continue adding hours instead of restarting at 12:00. For example, 3:12 p.m. would be written as 1512.
In the 24-hour format, midnight has two designations, 0000 and 2400: If your day begins at midnight, you use 0000 in military time, pronounced zero hundred hours. If your day ends at midnight, you end your day at 2400, pronounced 24 hundred hours.
In both cases—whether you choose 'eight thirty' or 'half past eight'—adding am or pm clarifies whether you're talking about morning or evening times; for example: “It's eight thirty am” versus “It's half past eight pm.” This specificity helps avoid misunderstandings when scheduling plans!
FAQs about telling time
What hand should you read first on a clock? When expressing time, we always start by saying the hour followed by the minutes. When telling time, we do the same thing. Start with the short hour hand, then move on to the long minute hand.
In English you don't say the h. You'd say "nine-forty-five" or "quarter to ten" if you're British posh.
The 11 o'clock number is the theatre term for that big, show-stopping song that happens late in Act 2, usually sung by a major character that comes to a realization. They have this name because the song would often occur around 11 o'clock.
For example, 3:15 is said as “three fifteen,” and 3:30 is “three thirty.” You can also say the minutes first, like “fifteen minutes past three” or “half past three” for 3:30. Past is used for times up to 30 minutes after the hour. For example, 2:20 is “twenty past two.”
Military time 1730 is 5:30 PM in standard time format. Remember, minutes don't change, while 1700 military time is equivalent to 5:00 PM in a 12-hour clock.
For morning times, use a.m. For afternoon and evening times, use p.m. Singular numbers are used for the sake of succinctness. Only use the full clock time if it cannot be denoted with a singular number. For example, it is 7 a.m., not 7:00 a.m.
There are no official standards established for the meaning of 12am and 12pm, but it is generally accepted that 12am means midnight and 12pm means midday. The 'am' and 'pm' stand for ante meridiem and post meridiem – Latin words meaning 'before the middle of the day' and 'after the middle of the day'.
How to Write AM and PM Correctly?