(trois heures) de l’après-midi - English Translation

In this picture, il est neuf heures du matin (it is nine in the morning). Sounds like croissant time to me! Example: je me lève à sept heures du matin (I get up at seven in the morning).

L'après-midi means “the afternoon”. I don't know about you, Victor, but I've never heard of such a time as “nine in the afternoon”! In France, l'après-midi refers roughly to the time between midi (noon) and 18 heures (6 p.m.). Example: le magasin ferme à cinq heures de l'après-midi (the shop closes at five in the afternoon).

Du soir means “in the evening”, which is not the time of day we can see in this picture. In France, le soir refers roughly to the time between 19 heures (7 p.m.) and minuit (midnight). Example: en France on dîne vers huit heures du soir (in France, people have dinner at about eight in the evening).

In this image, il est trois heures et demie de l'après-midi (it's half three in the afternoon). Note that le midi means “noon” or “midday”, although weirdly it can also refer to the south of France when capitalized. Examples: on se retrouve à midi (we're meeting at noon); nous passons nos vacances dans le Midi (we are spending our vacation in the south of France).

We use du matin to mean “in the morning”, which is not the time of day we can see in this picture. Example: je prends mon petit-déjeuner à huit heures du matin (I have breakfast at eight in the morning).

We use du soir to mean “in the evening”, which is not the time of day we can see in this picture. In France, le soir refers roughly to the time between 19 heures (7 p.m.) and minuit (midnight).

In this picture, il est dix heures et quart du soir (it's quarter past ten in the evening). Note that we tend to specify du soir (or du matin, etc.) after a 12-hour-clock time. We could also say il est 22 heures 15 (it's 10:15 p.m.), using the 24-hour clock, in which case we wouldn't specify du soir (in the evening). Example: je prends le bus à sept heures et quart du soir (I take the bus at quarter past seven in the evening).

We use du matin to mean “in the morning”, which is not the time of day we can see in this picture.

L'après-midi means “the afternoon”. I don't know about you, Victor, but I've never heard of such a time as “quarter past ten in the afternoon”! In France, l'après-midi refers roughly to the time between midi (noon) and 18 heures (6 p.m.). Example: mon frère sort de l'école à quatre heures de l'après-midi (my brother gets out of school at four in the afternoon).