Bedeutung
Asks about the current time.
Kultureller Hintergrund
Time is often discussed in relation to the five daily prayers. You might hear someone say 'I will meet you after Maghrib' rather than 'at 7 PM'. Egyptians are famous for 'Egyptian Time,' where 'five minutes' might mean twenty. Punctuality is more relaxed in social settings. In business hubs like Dubai or Doha, international standards of punctuality are strictly followed, and 'Kam al-sa'a' is used with precision. In these regions, you might hear a mix of Arabic and French when discussing time, such as using French numbers.
The 'Al' Rule
Always use 'Al-' with 'Sa'a' when asking for the time. Without it, you're asking for a count of hours.
Don't use 'Ma'
Even though English says 'What', Arabic says 'How much' (Kam). Using 'Ma' sounds like a direct translation error.
Bedeutung
Asks about the current time.
The 'Al' Rule
Always use 'Al-' with 'Sa'a' when asking for the time. Without it, you're asking for a count of hours.
Don't use 'Ma'
Even though English says 'What', Arabic says 'How much' (Kam). Using 'Ma' sounds like a direct translation error.
Politeness adds points
Always start with 'Afwan' (Excuse me) when asking a stranger. It makes a huge difference in how you are perceived.
Dialect Awareness
If you hear 'Al-sa'a kam?', don't panic! It's just the informal Egyptian way of saying the same thing.
Teste dich selbst
Fill in the missing word to ask for the time.
كم ____ الآن؟
'الساعة' is the standard word used in this phrase.
Which of these is the most polite way to ask a stranger the time?
...
Adding 'Afwan' (Excuse me) and 'Min fadlik' (Please) makes it polite.
Complete the dialogue.
أحمد: كم الساعة الآن؟ سارة: الساعة ____ (3:00).
Hours are expressed using ordinal numbers in the feminine form.
Match the phrase variation to the region.
Ad-aysh as-sa'a?
'Ad-aysh' is a classic Levantine way to say 'how much'.
🎉 Ergebnis: /4
Visuelle Lernhilfen
Aufgabensammlung
4 Aufgabenكم ____ الآن؟
'الساعة' is the standard word used in this phrase.
...
Adding 'Afwan' (Excuse me) and 'Min fadlik' (Please) makes it polite.
أحمد: كم الساعة الآن؟ سارة: الساعة ____ (3:00).
Hours are expressed using ordinal numbers in the feminine form.
Ad-aysh as-sa'a?
'Ad-aysh' is a classic Levantine way to say 'how much'.
🎉 Ergebnis: /4
Häufig gestellte Fragen
10 FragenArabic views time as a quantity of units passed since a starting point, hence 'How much' (Kam) is more logical than 'What' (Ma).
No, you can just say 'Kam al-sa'a?'. 'Al-an' (now) just adds emphasis and clarity.
Start with 'Al-sa'atu...' followed by the ordinal number of the hour (e.g., Al-sa'atu al-wahida).
It's a bit informal for an email. Better to use 'Arju ifadati bi-waqt...' (Please inform me of the time of...).
Use 'Fi ayyi sa'a al-rihla?' (At what hour is the flight?)
Yes! 'Sa'a' can mean the hour, a clock, or a wristwatch.
It's a phonetic bridge to help pronounce the following 'Al-'. It's written as a small kasra.
The MSA version is understood everywhere, but local dialects have their own versions like 'Ad-aysh' or 'Sh-hal'.
Add 'Tamaman' (تماماً) at the end of your answer.
The plural is 'Sa'at' (ساعات).
Verwandte Redewendungen
في أي وقت؟
similarAt what time?
كم استغرق من الوقت؟
builds onHow long did it take?
الوقت كالسيف
similarTime is like a sword.
على الوقت
specialized formOn time / Punctual
