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Measurement - Reading 12-hour and 24-hour clocks

Grade 4IGCSE

Review the key concepts, formulae, and examples before starting your quiz.

🔑Concepts

12-hour clocks use 'AM' (ante meridiem) for morning and 'PM' (post meridiem) for afternoon/evening.

24-hour clocks use four digits and do not use AM or PM (e.g., 08:00 or 20:00).

Midday is 12:00 PM in the 12-hour system and 12:00 in the 24-hour system.

Midnight is 12:00 AM in the 12-hour system and 00:00 in the 24-hour system.

To convert PM times (from 1:00 PM to 11:59 PM) to 24-hour time, add 12 to the hours.

To convert 24-hour times (from 13:00 to 23:59) to 12-hour time, subtract 12 from the hours and add PM.

📐Formulae

12-hour PM time+12:00=24-hour time\text{12-hour PM time} + 12:00 = \text{24-hour time}

24-hour time (if >12:59)12:00=12-hour PM time\text{24-hour time (if } > 12:59) - 12:00 = \text{12-hour PM time}

12:00 AM=00:00\text{12:00 AM} = 00:00

💡Examples

Problem 1:

Convert 4:25 PM into 24-hour clock format.

Solution:

16:25

Explanation:

Since the time is in the PM, we add 12 to the hour. 4+12=164 + 12 = 16. The minutes stay the same, so it becomes 16:25.

Problem 2:

Convert 08:10 into 12-hour clock format.

Solution:

8:10 AM

Explanation:

Because the hour is less than 12 and it is not 00, it is in the morning (AM). We remove the leading zero and add the 'AM' label.

Problem 3:

A train departs at 21:45. What time is this on a 12-hour clock?

Solution:

9:45 PM

Explanation:

Since the hour 21 is greater than 12, we subtract 12 from the hours (2112=921 - 12 = 9) and add the 'PM' suffix.

Problem 4:

Convert 12:05 AM to 24-hour clock format.

Solution:

00:05

Explanation:

In the 24-hour clock, the first hour of the day (12:00 AM to 12:59 AM) is represented by 00. Therefore, 12:05 AM becomes 00:05.