How to Tell Time and Talk About Schedules in Spanish: At, From, and Until
Learn to say clock times in Spanish and use a las, desde las, and hasta las to talk about when classes, work, and events start and end.
By TheaFirst conversations · Yapr Learn
Telling time in Spanish is built on a simple frame: use a las before a clock time to say when something happens. To talk about a span of time, pair desde las (from) with hasta las (until). This lesson teaches you to say times on the hour and with minutes, then combine them into short, useful sentences about classes, work, and appointments. You will practice the most common Latin American pattern, which uses son las for almost every hour, and you will learn the small exceptions that trip up beginners.
By the end, you can…
- say clock times on the hour and with minutes in Spanish.
- use a las, desde las, and hasta las to describe when events start and end.
- ask and answer simple questions about schedules using ¿A qué hora...? and ¿Hasta qué hora...?
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
¿Qué hora es?
What time is it?
keh OH-rah es
The standard question for asking the time. Use it with friends, coworkers, or strangers.
Son las nueve.
It is nine o'clock.
sohn lahs NWEH-beh
Use son las for all hours except one o'clock. For one o'clock, say Es la una.
La clase empieza a las nueve.
The class starts at nine.
lah KLAH-seh em-PYEH-sah ah lahs NWEH-beh
A las marks the exact starting time. Empieza means it starts or begins.
Trabajo desde las ocho hasta las cinco.
I work from eight until five.
trah-BAH-hoh DES-deh lahs OH-choh AHS-tah lahs SEEN-koh
Desde las... hasta las... frames a schedule that runs from one time to another.
¿A qué hora termina la reunión?
What time does the meeting end?
ah keh OH-rah tehr-MEE-nah lah reh-oo-NYOHN
Use this to ask when something finishes. Termina means it ends or finishes.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The core pattern is a las + time for a single moment, and desde las + time + hasta las + time for a range. Examples: La tienda abre a las diez. (The store opens at ten.) El examen es desde las dos hasta las cuatro. (The exam is from two until four.) For minutes, add y + number after the hour: a las nueve y media (at nine thirty), a las siete y cuarto (at seven fifteen). For 'quarter to,' use menos cuarto: a las ocho menos cuarto (at a quarter to eight).
When to use it
Use a las when you name one exact clock time: Llego a las siete. (I arrive at seven.) Use desde las... hasta las... when you describe a block of time with a clear start and end: La oficina está abierta desde las ocho hasta las seis. (The office is open from eight until six.) If you only need the end point, hasta las works alone: Estoy en clase hasta las tres. (I am in class until three.) In casual speech, many speakers shorten para las to pa' las, but a las stays standard in writing.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
¿A qué hora empieza la clase de español?
What time does Spanish class start?ah keh OH-rah em-PYEH-sah lah KLAH-seh deh es-pah-NYOLEmpieza a las diez de la mañana.
It starts at ten in the morning.em-PYEH-sah ah lahs DYEHZ deh lah mah-NYAH-nah¿Y hasta qué hora es?
And until what time is it?ee AHS-tah keh OH-rah esEs desde las diez hasta las once y media.
It is from ten until eleven thirty.es DES-deh lahs DYEHZ AHS-tah lahs OHN-seh ee MEH-dyahA little context goes a long way
In most of Latin America, the 12-hour clock dominates everyday speech, and de la mañana, de la tarde, and de la noche clarify the part of day. In Spain, you will also hear the 24-hour clock in schedules and transport, but a las still introduces the time in speech. When writing formal schedules, many countries use the 24-hour format: 15:30 instead of 3:30 p.m.
One thing to watch for
Saying Es las nueve instead of Son las nueve.
Try this instead: Use son las for every hour except one o'clock. Say Son las nueve (It is nine), but Es la una (It is one). The verb agrees with the plural las horas, so the plural son is standard for two through twelve.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you say 'The meeting starts at three' in Spanish?
Show a sample answer
La reunión empieza a las tres.
A las marks the exact start time, and empieza means it starts. You could also say comienza a las tres; both are correct.
2How do you say 'I work from nine until six'?
Show a sample answer
Trabajo desde las nueve hasta las seis.
Desde las... hasta las... frames the full range. Trabajo can mean I work, and the pattern stays the same for any subject.
3What is the difference between a las and hasta las?
Show a sample answer
A las points to one exact time; hasta las marks the end of a period.
A las is used for a single moment, as in Llego a las ocho. Hasta las is used for an endpoint, as in Estoy aquí hasta las ocho.
Use a las for one exact time and desde las... hasta las... for a schedule that runs from a start time to an end time. Remember son las for every hour except Es la una.
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