Telling Time and Dates in Turkish

Overview

Being able to tell time and talk about dates is one of the first practical skills you need when learning Turkish. Whether you are catching a bus, making an appointment, or simply asking when a shop opens, you will rely on these expressions every day. Turkish uses a straightforward system for telling time that, once you learn the key vocabulary, becomes very intuitive.

This topic is part of the A1 level, meaning you will encounter it right at the beginning of your Turkish journey. It builds directly on your knowledge of numbers, so make sure you are comfortable counting in Turkish before diving in. The good news is that Turkish time expressions follow regular patterns with very few exceptions.

How It Works

Asking and Telling Time

The basic question for time is Saat kaç? (What time is it?). The answer follows the pattern Saat + number.

Turkish	English
Saat kaç?	What time is it?
Saat bir.	It's one o'clock.
Saat iki.	It's two o'clock.
Saat üç.	It's three o'clock.
Saat on iki.	It's twelve o'clock.

Half and Quarter Hours

Turkish	English
buçuk	half past
çeyrek	quarter
geçiyor	past (passing)
var	to (remaining)

To say half past, add buçuk after the hour:

Turkish	English
Saat beş buçuk.	It's half past five. (5:30)
Saat on buçuk.	It's half past ten. (10:30)

For quarter past, use çeyrek geçiyor:

Turkish	English
Saat üçü çeyrek geçiyor.	It's quarter past three. (3:15)
Saat sekizi çeyrek geçiyor.	It's quarter past eight. (8:15)

For quarter to, use çeyrek var:

Turkish	English
Saat dörde çeyrek var.	It's quarter to four. (3:45)
Saat bire çeyrek var.	It's quarter to one. (12:45)

Notice that with geçiyor the hour takes the accusative suffix (-i/-ı/-u/-ü), while with var the hour takes the dative suffix (-e/-a).

Minutes Past and To

For specific minutes, use the same geçiyor/var pattern:

Turkish	English
Saat ikiy­i yirmi geçiyor.	It's twenty past two. (2:20)
Saat altıya on var.	It's ten to six. (5:50)

Days of the Week

Turkish	English
Pazartesi	Monday
Salı	Tuesday
Çarşamba	Wednesday
Perşembe	Thursday
Cuma	Friday
Cumartesi	Saturday
Pazar	Sunday

Note that days of the week are not capitalized in running text in Turkish, though they often appear capitalized in calendars and headings.

Months of the Year

Turkish	English
Ocak	January
Şubat	February
Mart	March
Nisan	April
Mayıs	May
Haziran	June
Temmuz	July
Ağustos	August
Eylül	September
Ekim	October
Kasım	November
Aralık	December

Expressing Dates

Dates in Turkish follow the pattern: day + month + year.

Turkish	English
5 Mart 2025	March 5, 2025
Bugün kaç?	What is today's date?
Bugün 10 Nisan.	Today is April 10th.

Examples in Context

Turkish	English	Note
Saat kaç? Saat üç.	What time is it? It's three o'clock.	Basic time question
Saat beş buçuk.	It's five thirty.	Half past
Toplantı saat dokuzda.	The meeting is at nine.	Locative -da for "at"
Saat onu çeyrek geçiyor.	It's quarter past ten.	Accusative on hour
Saat bire beş var.	It's five to one.	Dative on hour
Pazartesi geliyorum.	I'm coming on Monday.	No preposition needed
Doğum günüm 15 Mayıs.	My birthday is May 15th.	Date format
Saat kaçta buluşalım?	What time shall we meet?	-ta suffix for "at what time"
Akşam saat yedide.	At seven in the evening.	Time of day + specific hour
Cuma günü tatil.	Friday is a holiday.	günü = "day" (possessive)

Common Mistakes

Mixing Up geçiyor and var

• Wrong: Saat üçe on geçiyor. (using dative with geçiyor)
• Right: Saat üçü on geçiyor. (using accusative with geçiyor)
• Why: When minutes are "past" the hour, the hour takes the accusative case. When minutes remain "to" the next hour, that hour takes the dative case.

Forgetting buçuk Comes After the Hour

• Wrong: Saat buçuk beş.
• Right: Saat beş buçuk.
• Why: In Turkish, "half" always follows the hour number, not the other way around.

Using Prepositions for Days

• Wrong: Pazartesi'de geliyorum. (adding a preposition like in English)
• Right: Pazartesi geliyorum. (no suffix needed for days as time expressions)
• Why: Days of the week used as time adverbs generally do not need a case suffix. You can optionally say Pazartesi günü to emphasize "on Monday."

Confusing Saat as Both "Hour" and "Clock"

• Wrong: Thinking saat only means "clock" or "watch"
• Right: Saat means both "clock/watch" and "hour/time" depending on context
• Why: Context determines the meaning. Saat kaç? asks the time; bir saat means "one hour."

Practice Tips

• Practice by looking at a clock several times a day and saying the time aloud in Turkish. Start with full hours, then add half hours, then quarter hours, and finally arbitrary minutes.
• Write out your weekly schedule using Turkish days and times. For example: Pazartesi saat dokuzda iş, Salı saat altıda spor.
• Listen to Turkish weather forecasts or news clips — they frequently mention days and times, giving you natural exposure to these patterns.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Numbers — You need to know Turkish numbers to tell time and express dates.