Time and Date in Chinese: A Complete Guide

Time is a fundamental aspect of communication, and knowing how to discuss time, dates, and schedules in Mandarin can significantly enhance your fluency. Whether you’re planning your day, scheduling appointments, or just chatting with friends, understanding how to express time and dates in Chinese will make you sound more natural and confident. In this post, we’ll break down everything you need to know about time and dates in Chinese, with clear explanations, vocabulary lists, and real-world examples.

1. Understanding the Days of the Week

One of the first things you’ll need to know when discussing time in Mandarin is how to say the days of the week. Unlike English, where each day has a unique name, the days of the week in Mandarin are very systematic. The word for “week” is 星期 (xīngqī), and each day is simply numbered from 1 to 7.

Days of the Week in Mandarin

星期一 (xīngqī yī) - Monday
星期二 (xīngqī èr) - Tuesday
星期三 (xīngqī sān) - Wednesday
星期四 (xīngqī sì) - Thursday
星期五 (xīngqī wǔ) - Friday
星期六 (xīngqī liù) - Saturday
星期日 (xīngqī rì) or 星期天 (xīngqī tiān) - Sunday

Example Sentences with Days of the Week:

我星期一上课。 (wǒ xīngqī yī shàngkè) - “I have class on Monday.”
我们星期五去看电影。 (wǒmen xīngqī wǔ qù kàn diànyǐng) - “We are going to watch a movie on Friday.”
你星期天做什么？ (nǐ xīngqī tiān zuò shénme?) - “What are you doing on Sunday?”

With these days of the week, you can easily talk about your schedule, plans, and routines.

2. Talking About the Months of the Year

Just like the days of the week, the months in Chinese are quite simple to understand. The word for “month” is 月 (yuè), and the months of the year are named by combining the number of the month with this word.

Months of the Year in Mandarin

一月 (yī yuè) - January
二月 (èr yuè) - February
三月 (sān yuè) - March
四月 (sì yuè) - April
五月 (wǔ yuè) - May
六月 (liù yuè) - June
七月 (qī yuè) - July
八月 (bā yuè) - August
九月 (jiǔ yuè) - September
十月 (shí yuè) - October
十一月 (shí yī yuè) - November
十二月 (shí èr yuè) - December

So, 一月 means “first month” (January), and 二月 means “second month” (February). This structure is straightforward and easy to memorize.

3. How to Say the Date in Mandarin

When it comes to expressing specific dates in Chinese, it follows a simple and logical format: Year + Month + Day. The words for year, month, and day are 年 (nián), 月 (yuè), and 日 (rì), respectively.

Example Dates:

2024年11月5日 (2024 nián 11 yuè 5 rì) - “November 5, 2024”
2024年10月1日 (2024 nián 10 yuè 1 rì) - “October 1, 2024”

If you want to refer to a specific day within a month, you can use the word 号 (hào), which means “number” (day of the month). For example:

1号 (yī hào) - “the 1st”
5号 (wǔ hào) - “the 5th”

So, the date 2024年11月5日 can be informally said as 2024年11月5号.

Asking About Dates:

今天是几月几号？ (jīntiān shì jǐ yuè jǐ hào?) - “What is the date today?”
你生日是几月几号？ (nǐ shēngrì shì jǐ yuè jǐ hào?) - “When is your birthday?”
明天是几号？ (míngtiān shì jǐ hào?) - “What’s the date tomorrow?”

4. Telling the Time in Mandarin

Telling time in Chinese is straightforward once you understand the basic structure. The format is hour + 点 (diǎn) + minute + 分 (fēn).

Examples:

一点 (yī diǎn) - 1:00
两点 (liǎng diǎn) - 2:00
三点 (sān diǎn) - 3:00
四点半 (sì diǎn bàn) - 4:30
十点十分 (shí diǎn shí fēn) - 10:10
下午三点 (xiàwǔ sān diǎn) - 3:00 PM

Notice that in Mandarin, when talking about 2:00 or any other even hour, we use 两点 (liǎng diǎn) instead of 二点 (èr diǎn), which is typical in Mandarin for certain quantities like time.

For half-past the hour, we use 半 (bàn), so 四点半 means “half past four.”

Example Sentences:

我八点起床。 (wǒ bā diǎn qǐchuáng) - “I wake up at 8:00.”
我们下午三点见面。 (wǒmen xiàwǔ sān diǎn jiànmiàn) - “We meet at 3:00 PM.”

5. Talking About Daily Routines

When discussing your day-to-day life, there are some essential vocabulary words related to daily activities. These are crucial when talking about your routine or asking others about theirs.

Common Daily Routine Vocabulary:

起床 (qǐchuáng) - “To wake up”
吃早饭 (chī zǎofàn) - “To have breakfast”
上班 (shàngbān) - “To go to work”
吃午饭 (chī wǔfàn) - “To have lunch”
回家 (huí jiā) - “To go home”
吃晚饭 (chī wǎnfàn) - “To have dinner”
睡觉 (shuìjiào) - “To sleep”

These words can be combined with time expressions to give a detailed picture of your daily schedule.

Example Sentences:

我早上六点起床。 (wǒ zǎoshang liù diǎn qǐchuáng) - “I wake up at 6:00 AM.”
我中午十二点吃午饭。 (wǒ zhōngwǔ shí’èr diǎn chī wǔfàn) - “I eat lunch at 12:00 PM.”
我晚上十点睡觉。 (wǒ wǎnshàng shí diǎn shuìjiào) - “I go to bed at 10:00 PM.”

6. Asking Questions About Time and Routines

Asking and answering questions about time and routines is key to having natural conversations in Mandarin. Here are some questions you can use:

Common Questions:

你几点起床？ (nǐ jǐ diǎn qǐchuáng?) - “What time do you wake up?”
你什么时候吃午饭？ (nǐ shénme shíhòu chī wǔfàn?) - “When do you have lunch?”
你每天几点下班？ (nǐ měitiān jǐ diǎn xiàbān?) - “What time do you finish work every day?”

Sample Responses:

我六点起床。 (wǒ liù diǎn qǐchuáng) - “I wake up at 6:00.”
我中午十二点吃午饭。 (wǒ zhōngwǔ shí’èr diǎn chī wǔfàn) - “I eat lunch at 12:00 PM.”

Conclusion

Mastering how to talk about time and dates in Mandarin is a key step toward fluency. With this guide, you can now confidently ask about dates, tell the time, and discuss your daily routine. The vocabulary and structures outlined in this post are the building blocks of everyday conversation in Chinese, so practice them regularly to improve your language skills.