la una y diez
/la una i djeθ/from spelling rules
To say "one ten" in Spanish, use la una y diez.
The phrase la una y diez is used to express the time when it is ten minutes past one o'clock.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to "the one and ten".
Which one should you use?
While English speakers often use "past" to express the time (as in "ten past one"), Spanish uses the conjunction y (and) to join the hour and the minutes.
How does it change in a sentence?
When telling the time in Spanish, the number one is always expressed as la una rather than el uno.
How do you pronounce it?
/la una i djeθ/
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking-speaking countries, you might hear people use the word menos to count backwards from the next hour once the minutes pass the thirty-minute mark.
- The word diez is a distant relative of the English word 'ten' and the German word 'zehn'. They both trace back to the same prehistoric root in Proto-Indo-European.
- While la una y diez is standard, some Spanish speakers might say la una con diez to express the same time.
Examples in context
- El tren sale a la una y diez.The train leaves at one ten.
- Nos vemos a la una y diez.See you at one ten.
Example conversation
Lucía and Alejandro are coordinating their meeting time.
- Lucía¿A qué hora llegas, Alejandro?What time are you arriving, Alejandro?
- AlejandroLlego a la una y diez.I arrive at one ten.
- LucíaEstá bien, yo te espero.That's fine, I will wait for you.
- AlejandroGracias, Lucía.Thank you, Lucía.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries diez, la, una, y, CC BY-SA 4.0.
