LESSON 15- TELLING THE TIME
When you ask the time in Romanian, you say:
Cât este ceasul?=What time is it?
or
Cât este ora?
You answer:
Este ora unu=It is one o'clock.
Este ora două=It is two o'clock.
Este ora douăsprezece=It is twelve o' clock.
Note:
In Romanian the numerals are invariable. This means they do not decline. But there are a few exceptions. I will mention here the numerals: “unu”, “doi” and their compounds (except the numeral “unsprezece” which is invariable).
Next, I will talk about the numeral “doi” and its compound “doisprezece". They have different forms, according to the gender.
Masculine:
doi=two
doisprezece=twelve
Feminine and neuter:
două
douăsprezece
Because “ora” is a feminine noun, the numeral “doi” will accord to this noun. Thus we will say: “Este ora două”, “Este ora douăsprezece”.
Este ora patru si un sfert=It is quarter past four.
Este ora cinci si jumătate=It is half past five.
Este ora opt fără un sfert=It is quarter before eight.
Note:
In the spoken language we use most frequently the 12-our clock. But sometimes we use the 24-our clock too, especially in the written language.
Example:
Este ora şaisprezece=It is sixteen o’ clock.