http://www.englishforums.com/English/EslGeneralEnglishGrammar-Questions/Forum12.htmAsk your questions on grammar and get your sentence checked. We answer lots of different types of general English grammar questions here.enXMOD (Build: 3598.39794)http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81941Sun, 08 Feb 2009 18:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:81941nona the brit0http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81941http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-81941.xmlI've honestly never heard anyone say 'hour o minutes' except in very formal situations ie. military/scientific/spies needing to synchronise watches/very dorky teenagers.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81930Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:81930hbae7871http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81930http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-81930.xmlDepends on the type of watch you are looking at. If it's electronic then the hour and minute digits are there. Just read the exact numbers out loud. If it's a dial watch, then most peole would round off the time. Eleven-o-seven becomes eleven-o-five, seven-twenty-one becomes seven-twenty and so on.http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81913Sun, 08 Feb 2009 18:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:81913Klavier2http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81913http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-81913.xmlI read your post Nona, and I think there are differences between BrE and AmE. I'm a little puzzled when it comes to formal and informal way of telling the time. I was taught that five past one was the formal way, and one five the informal way. My question is: what are the formal and informal expressions in BrE and AmE counting :00 :05 :10 etc? An attempt: Formal BrE Two o'clock. Five past two. Ten past two. A quarter past two. Twenty past two. Twenty five past two. Half past two. Twenty five to two. Twenty to two. A quarter to two. Ten to two. Five to two. Informal BrE Two. Five past two. Five past two - Quarter past two. ?? Quarter...http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81259Sun, 08 Mar 2009 18:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:81259nona the brit3http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#81259http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-81259.xmlI would say five past eleven! Or 20 past eleven if 'rounding up' from 18minutes past eleven. The o is maybe a hangover from o'clock, but we only use the o'clock when it is precisely on the hour. One o'clock. five past one. Quarter past one or one fifteen. twenty five past one half one (people often drop the 'past' for the half hour) or one thirty quarter to two or one forty five ten to two five to two two o'clock. Most people do not use the precise minutes, they round up or down to the nearest ten, unless you are running a scientific experiment or something! The use of numbers seems to be saved for the 15, 30 and 45 minutes situations, one ten sounds odd to me. In Britain you will find that older people (over 60s?)...http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#80944Wed, 08 Apr 2009 17:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:80944CalifJim4http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#80944http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-80944.xmlI suppose you don't really have to say "oh", but it sounds more normal to me that way!http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#80899Sun, 08 Mar 2009 18:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:80899Klavier5http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#80899http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-80899.xmlDo I have to say oh? May I just say: It's eleven five?http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#80347Thu, 08 Jan 2009 18:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:80347CalifJim6http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htm#80347http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-80347.xmlThese are all possibilities. The first group is exact to the minute; the second group is for approximate times. eleven, eleven oh one, eleven oh two, eleven oh three, eleven oh four, eleven oh five, eleven oh six, ... eleven oh nine, eleven ten, eleven eleven, eleven twelve, ... (not "eleven zero one", etc.) eleven, a little after eleven, about five after eleven, about eleven, just after eleven, around eleven CJhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htmSun, 08 Feb 2009 18:53:31 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:80334Guest7http://www.englishforums.com/English/ElevenOhSeven/qzqj/post.htmhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-80334.xmlTeachers, if it is five minutes past eleven, would you say it is "eleven oh five" or "eleven O five" ? If it is seven minutes past eleven, what would you day? would you say the exact minutes? "eleven oh seven"? I have never seen an example of a time at which the minute is not at five, ten, fifteen,.... and I have never heard people tell a time of this kind. I would appreciate if you tell me what you would do with this example.