Latest / Learn Amharic with Fexingo / Amharic Time: Minutes & Hours
Transcript
- Lucas: Hey Luna, ready for another episode? Today we're tackling something super useful: telling time in Amharic. Luna: Oh, I've been waiting for this! I still get confused when someone asks me the time over there. Lucas: Totally. And it's a great way to make real connections. So the first phrase you need is: ስንት ሰዓት ነው? That means 'What time is it?' Listen again: ስንት ሰዓት ነው? Luna: ስንት ሰዓት ነው? Hmm, that's kind of a mouthful but I like it. ስንት ሰዓት ነው? Lucas: You got it. Now, when someone asks you that, you can answer with the hour. Let's start with one o'clock: አንድ ሰዓት ነው. It literally means 'It is one hour.' Say it with me: አንድ ሰዓት ነው. Luna: አንድ ሰዓት ነው. Yeah, that's fun. So if I'm at a café and I want to say it's one, I just say አንድ ሰዓት ነው? Lucas: Exactly. And what about noon? That's አስራ ሁለት ሰዓት ነው. Try it: አስራ ሁለት ሰዓት ነው. Luna: አስራ ሁለት ሰዓት ነው. Oh, it's like twelve o'clock. That's clever because twelve in Amharic is አስራ ሁለት, right? Lucas: Right! Now let's make it more precise. What about half past? The word for half is ግማሽ, so half past one would be ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው, but you'd say it with the hour. Actually, let's keep it simple: just ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው means 'It's half past the hour.' We'll build on it in a bit. Luna: So ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው is like saying half past? But you'd know which hour from context, I guess. Lucas: Exactly. And for quarter past, you say አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው, which means 'fifteen minutes.' So if it's quarter past one, you'd say አንድ ሰዓት እና አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. But today we'll keep it simple with just አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. Luna: አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. Ooh, that's a bit longer. Let me try again: አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. Lucas: Perfect. Now let's put it all together in a tiny story. Picture this: you're at a café, the sun is high, and you want to meet a friend at one. You look at your watch and say to yourself, ስንት ሰዓት ነው? And you see it's already አንድ ሰዓት ነው. Oops, you're late. But then your friend walks in and says, አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው, meaning it's a quarter past. You reply, ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው, half past? No, it's only quarter past. Okay, let's practice that scene. Luna: So I'd say ስንት ሰዓት ነው? And you'd answer አንድ ሰዓት ነው. Got it. But what if someone asks me the time and it's exactly noon? I say አስራ ሁለት ሰዓት ነው, right? Lucas: You're nailing it. Now, let's do a quick review. I'll ask, you answer. Ready? Luna: Ready. Lucas: ስንት ሰዓት ነው? Luna: አንድ ሰዓት ነው. Lucas: And if someone asks at noon? Luna: አስራ ሁለት ሰዓት ነው. Lucas: Great. Now, how about telling someone it's half past? Just the phrase? Luna: ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው. Lucas: And quarter past? Luna: አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. Lucas: You know, this reminds me of how far you've come. And if Fexingo has been helping you make actual progress with Amharic, we'd love it if you considered supporting the show. A couple of dollars a month is genuinely what keeps these going — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, if you've gotten something out of them. Luna: Yeah, every little bit helps us keep making these episodes. Now, back to time! Let's try a real conversation. I'll ask you, and you answer with the time. Okay? Lucas: Sure, but let me ask you first. ስንት ሰዓት ነው? Luna: አንድ ሰዓት ነው. Lucas: Perfect. And if it's half past? Luna: ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው. Lucas: And quarter past? Luna: አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. Lucas: You're a natural. So remember, next time you're in Addis and someone asks you the time, you can say ስንት ሰዓት ነው? and reply with አንድ ሰዓት ነው or አስራ ሁለት ሰዓት ነው. And if you want to be more precise, add ግማሽ ሰዓት ነው or አስራ አምስት ደቂቃ ነው. Luna: Thanks Lucas, this was a great session. See you next time! Lucas: Bye for now, and keep practicing.