When learning Slovak, understanding how to express time and date is crucial as it forms the backbone of everyday conversation. This article will guide you through various expressions for time and date in Slovak, which will help you in scheduling appointments, making travel plans, or simply engaging in small talk.
Expressing Specific Times
In Slovak, telling time is usually done in the 24-hour format, especially in formal situations or public timetables. However, for casual conversation, the 12-hour clock is commonly used. To ask for the time, you can say:
„Koľko je hodín?“ (What time is it?)
When answering, you might respond:
„Je jedna hodina.“ (It is one o’clock.)
For times after the hour, minutes are added by using the word „minúty“ for minutes:
„Je štvrť na dve.“ (It is a quarter past one.)
„Je pol dve.“ (It is half past one.)
„Je trištvrte na dve.“ (It is a quarter to two.)
For expressing time in the evening or at night, you can use:
„Je devätnásť hodín.“ (It is 19:00, or 7 PM.)
Days of the Week
Days of the week are not capitalized in Slovak unless they start a sentence. Here’s how to say them:
Pondelok (Monday), Utorok (Tuesday), Streda (Wednesday), Štvrtok (Thursday), Piatok (Friday), Sobota (Saturday), Nedeľa (Sunday).
To say “on Monday” you would use „v pondelok“. For example:
„V pondelok idem k lekárovi.“ (I am going to the doctor on Monday.)
Months and Dates
Months in Slovak are also not capitalized. Here they are in order:
Január, Február, Marec, Apríl, Máj, Jún, Júl, August, September, Október, November, December.
When saying the date, the day comes before the month, and you use cardinal numbers (unlike in English, where ordinal numbers are often used). Here’s an example:
„Dnes je 5. apríl.“ (Today is April 5th.)
Discussing Years and Centuries
When expressing years, Slovak uses cardinal numbers. For example:
„Narodil som sa v roku 1992.“ (I was born in the year 1992.)
Centuries are expressed using ordinal numbers:
„V devätnástom storočí…“ (In the nineteenth century…)
Time Duration
To discuss duration or periods of time, Slovak uses the preposition „počas“ or the phrase „trvať“ (to last). An example would be:
„Film trval dve hodiny.“ (The movie lasted two hours.)
Time Frequency
To express frequency, such as weekly or annually, you can use:
„Každý týždeň“ (every week),
„Každý rok“ (every year).
For example:
„Chodím do posilňovne každý týždeň.“ (I go to the gym every week.)
Seasons
The four seasons in Slovak are:
Jar (Spring), Leto (Summer), Jeseň (Autumn), Zima (Winter).
You might say:
„V lete chodíme často plávať.“ (In the summer, we often go swimming.)
Understanding these basic expressions related to time and date in Slovak will significantly boost your ability to communicate effectively. Whether you are planning activities or simply engaging in everyday conversation, these phrases will prove to be very useful.
