Telling the time: a day in four parts

Everyday Thai doesn't count the hours of the day straight through, or in two halves of twelve. It splits the day into four stretches, and each has its own word for o'clock. The usual explanation is that these words come from sounds: the time was struck on a gong by day and on a drum at night. โมง is the gong, ทุ่ม is the drum, and ตี simply means to strike. That's why 9 pm is สามทุ่ม, the third drum beat.

โมง alone can be ambiguous: หกโมง can be 6 am or 6 pm. A word for the part of the day settles it: เช้า, morning, from 6 to 11, and เย็น, evening, from 4 to 6 pm. Night and late-evening hours don't need one, because ตี and ทุ่ม already say when.

Minutes come after the hour, as a number with นาที: แปดโมงสิบห้านาที, 8:15. Half past is ครึ่ง, and exactly on the hour is ตรง: บ่ายสองโมงตรง, 2 pm sharp. In conversation minutes are often dropped: ประมาณบ่ายสอง, around two.

• ตอนนี้dtɔɔn-níinowกี่gìihow manyโมงmoongo'clockแล้วlɛ́ɛoalready

  What time is it now?

  Literally now how many o'clock already. กี่โมง means what time.

• บ่ายbàaiafternoonสองsɔ̌ɔngtwoโมงmoongo'clockครึ่งkrʉ̂nghalf

  2:30 pm, half past two

  ครึ่ง follows the hour that has already started, as in half past two.

• ร้านráanshopเปิดbpə̀ətopenกี่gìihow manyโมงmoongo'clock

  What time does the shop open?

• ร้านráanshopปิดbpìtcloseสี่sìifourทุ่มtûmevening hour

  The shop closes at 10 pm.

  The fourth drum beat after 6 pm is 22:00, so the number you hear doesn't match the clock.

• รถไฟrót-faitrainออกɔ̀ɔkleaveตีdtiinight hourห้าhâafive

  The train leaves at 5 am.

  With night hours the number comes after: ตีห้า, not ห้าตี.

• เจอjəəmeetกันganeach otherหกhòksixโมงmoongo'clockเย็นyenevening

  See you at 6 pm.

  Without เย็น it would just be six o'clock, and the other person could reasonably turn up in the morning.

Stations, airports and the news use a different system: the 24-hour clock with the word นาฬิกา, as in สิบสี่นาฬิกา, 14:00. In timetables it's shortened to น., sometimes with Thai digits: ๑๔.๐๐ น. You don't need to speak this way, but it helps to recognise it, because schedules are written like this.