son las doce de la tarde
/son las doθe de la taɾde/from spelling rules
To say "it is twelve pm" in Spanish, use son las doce de la tarde.
This phrase is used to state that the time is twelve o'clock in the afternoon.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "they are the twelve of the afternoon". This is because Spanish uses plural verbs and articles for all hours except one.
How do you pronounce it?
/son las doθe de la taɾde/
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, las doce de la tarde marks the start of the main meal of the day, which is often larger than dinner.
- The word doce comes from the Latin 'duodecim', which literally means 'two plus ten'.
- While tarde means 'afternoon' in this phrase, it also means 'late' in other contexts.
Examples in context
- ¿Qué hora es? – Es mediodía.What time is it? – It's noon.
- ¿A qué hora nos reunimos? – Nos reunimos a las doce del mediodía.What time do we meet? – We meet at twelve noon.
- ¡Mira el reloj! – ¡Ya es mediodía!Look at the clock! – It's already noon!
- No me dijo la hora exacta. – Es mediodía. Son las doce del día.He didn't tell me the exact time – It's noon. It's twelve in the day.
- ¿Qué hora es? Son las doce de la tarde.What time is it? It is twelve pm.
- ¿Sabes si ya son las doce de la tarde?Do you know if it is already twelve pm?
- Mira el reloj, son las doce de la tarde.Look at the clock, it is twelve pm.
Example conversation
Elena and Daniel are checking the time during their lunch break.
- ElenaDaniel, ¿qué hora es?Daniel, what time is it?
- DanielSon las doce de la tarde.It is twelve pm.
- Elena¡Perfecto! Es hora de almorzar.Perfect! It is time to eat lunch.
- DanielSí, tengo mucha hambre.Yes, I am very hungry.
