Time in Vietnamese: How to Tell and Ask the Time

Knowing how to tell and ask the time is one of the most practical skills for daily life in Vietnam. Whether you are catching a bus, meeting a friend, or checking a schedule, time comes up constantly. Vietnamese time expressions follow logical, predictable patterns built around a handful of core words. Once you learn them, you can express any time on the clock.

How to Ask "What Time Is It?"

There are two common ways to ask for the time in Vietnamese. Both are understood everywhere and you can use either one in any situation.

A typical exchange looks like this:

To answer, use bây giờ là, followed by the time. You can also just state the time directly. Both are natural.

Telling the Hour

The word giờ means both "hour" and "o'clock". To say the time on the hour, place a number in front of giờ. The formula is simple: number + giờ. If you can count to twelve in Vietnamese, you already know how to say every hour.

Half Past, Quarter Past, and Minutes

Vietnamese uses four patterns to express minutes. Once you know giờ (hour), rưỡi (half), phút (minute), and kém (minus), you can say any time.

Half past with rưỡi

Add rưỡi after the hour to mean "half past". This works for every hour.

Minutes past the hour

For exact minutes, put the minute number after giờ. The word phút means "minute". It can be added for clarity but is usually dropped in casual speech.

Formula: number + giờ + minutes. Optionally add phút at the end.

Minutes to the next hour with kém

Use kém to express minutes before the next hour. It means "less" or "minus". Name the upcoming hour, then add kém and the number of minutes remaining.

Formula: next hour + giờ + kém + minutes

The năm / lăm rule

The number 5 on its own is năm. But when a number ends in 5, that final 5 becomes lăm. Think of it this way: if 5 comes after another digit, say lăm. This is a general Vietnamese number rule, not specific to time.

Similarly, mười becomes mươi in compound tens: hai mươi, ba mươi, and so on. Mười is the standalone number 10. Mươi is used when it follows another digit like 20 or 30.

Parts of the Day

Vietnamese does not use AM and PM. Instead, speakers add a time-of-day word after the hour to specify which part of the day they mean. These five markers cover the full 24-hour cycle.

The markers are placed after the full time expression: ba giờ rưỡi chiều = 3:30 PM. When the context is already clear, speakers often omit the marker.

12-Hour vs. 24-Hour Clock

Vietnamese speakers switch between the two formats depending on the situation. In everyday speech, the 12-hour clock with time-of-day markers is standard. Written schedules and formal contexts tend to use the 24-hour clock.

For the 24-hour clock, simply continue counting past twelve: mười ba giờ for 13:00, mười bốn giờ for 14:00, up to hai mươi ba giờ for 23:00. An advantage of the 24-hour format is that there is no confusion about AM or PM.

Talking About Duration

When talking about how long something takes rather than what time it happens, Vietnamese uses different words. This distinction is important. Do not confuse clock time with duration.

Useful Time Phrases

Beyond reading the clock, these phrases help you schedule plans, ask about timing, and navigate daily life in Vietnam.

Scheduling and plans

Punctuality and timing

Example conversations

Quick Reference Table

A cheat sheet covering the most important time expressions. Bookmark this page and come back whenever you need a quick refresher.

FAQ