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I’ll see you at half past

Mind that apostrophe.
SDN123
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I’ll see you at half past

#508366

Postby SDN123 » June 19th, 2022, 9:07 pm

I currently live in North America and I told my well educated work college “I will see you at half past one”. He said, without any intention of humour or sarcasm, “can you please not say that, I always think you want to meet a half a minute past one. Please can you say ‘I will see you at one thirty’”.

What was an appropriate reply?

SDN

kiloran
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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508367

Postby kiloran » June 19th, 2022, 9:13 pm

Is that thirty minutes or thirty seconds?

--kiloran
edit... and am or pm?

Dod101
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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508372

Postby Dod101 » June 19th, 2022, 9:37 pm

kiloran wrote:Is that thirty minutes or thirty seconds?

--kiloran
edit... and am or pm?


If you understand him correctly that he means at 30 minutes past 1pm, then the correct answer is surely, ‘OK’.

Dod

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508373

Postby monabri » June 19th, 2022, 9:47 pm

SDN123 wrote:I currently live in North America and I told my well educated work college “I will see you at half past one”. He said, without any intention of humour or sarcasm, “can you please not say that, I always think you want to meet a half a minute past one. Please can you say ‘I will see you at one thirty’”.

What was an appropriate reply?

SDN


So your colleague has made this mistake before! Surely by now they should've realised what you mean? How many times have they turned up 29.5 mins too early and why in the name of Father Time would they think you mean to meet them at 30 seconds after the hour? Now , if they were German I could understand that they might turn up at the wrong time (meet you at "half two" means meet you at 13:30).

So, an appropriate reply might be " well, you'll be waiting ~half an hour for me....again!"

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508374

Postby Itsallaguess » June 19th, 2022, 9:48 pm

Reminds me of that joke -

A woman asked an Army General when the last time he had made love to a woman.

The general replied "1956, ma'am."

The woman, in disbelief, said "1956?! That long? Come with me and let me make your night better."

The woman and general went back to her apartment and made passionate love for over an hour.

Afterwards, the woman cuddled up to the general and said "Well, you sure haven't forgotten anything since 1956..."

The general looked at her, confused, and replied "I sure hope not, it's only 2130 now."

Cheers!

Itsallaguess

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508375

Postby paulnumbers » June 19th, 2022, 9:49 pm

SDN123 wrote:I currently live in North America and I told my well educated work college “I will see you at half past one”. He said, without any intention of humour or sarcasm, “can you please not say that, I always think you want to meet a half a minute past one. Please can you say ‘I will see you at one thirty’”.

What was an appropriate reply?

SDN


Learn to deal with other cultures? Of course, that's not how I actually deal with my American colleagues.

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508382

Postby GrahamPlatt » June 19th, 2022, 10:24 pm

SDN123 wrote:What was an appropriate reply?
SDN



What block is that on?

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508402

Postby Lootman » June 20th, 2022, 6:43 am

"Half past" anything is not a phrase I would use in America, since Americans don't really use it. They might understand "half after one" better. But 1:30 is best. And don't use a 24 hour clock there either, unless you want people to think you are in the military. It is 1:30 p.m.

Say "half" with a short "a" and a silent "l" unless you are wishing to come across like you are auditioning for Masterpiece Theatre.

"Quarter after" and "Quarter of" are better than "Quarter past" and "Quarter to".

And of course don't use "See you in a fortnight".

Obviously anything metric is out - one of the finest things about America. :D

bungeejumper
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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508407

Postby bungeejumper » June 20th, 2022, 7:49 am

Basically I agree with Lootman about the need, when in Rome, to talk as the Romans do. Well, except when they talk about gallons and quarts, because nobody likes getting short measures. The best case yet for metric measures, but one which the world's largest near-island has yet to grasp. ;)

Still, it's a slippery thing, time. If a German agrees to meet you at halb sieben, he means half past six. Which is why all the sunloungers around the pool are taken by the time you've finished breakfast. :lol:

(Ob. eyebrow-raising note. If you google the images from https://www.google.com/search?q=halb+zwei+uhr, you'll notice that the jury is nicely split between 1.30 and 2.30. Funny thing, language.)

BJ

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508411

Postby servodude » June 20th, 2022, 8:24 am

bungeejumper wrote:Basically I agree with Lootman about the need, when in Rome, to talk as the Romans do. Well, except when they talk about gallons and quarts, because nobody likes getting short measures. The best case yet for metric measures, but one which the world's largest near-island has yet to grasp. ;)

Still, it's a slippery thing, time. If a German agrees to meet you at halb sieben, he means half past six. Which is why all the sunloungers around the pool are taken by the time you've finished breakfast. :lol:

(Ob. eyebrow-raising note. If you google the images from https://www.google.com/search?q=halb+zwei+uhr, you'll notice that the jury is nicely split between 1.30 and 2.30. Funny thing, language.)

BJ


Back of one it is then ;)

Though is there a geographic split in the US? I've found after and past to both crop up and I can't for the moment break down who uses what (I'll pay attention now :) ). I deal with folk over quite a bit of it and I've never had to worry about confusing anyone yet (unlike as you say gallons! :roll: )

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508412

Postby pje16 » June 20th, 2022, 8:32 am

I used to know someone who called 1.25
Five and Twenty past
WHAT !!!! :lol:

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508413

Postby servodude » June 20th, 2022, 8:44 am

pje16 wrote:I used to know someone who called 1.25
Five and Twenty past
WHAT !!!! :lol:


Was he delivering your blackbird pies?

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508414

Postby pje16 » June 20th, 2022, 8:53 am

Ahh that explains the mangling of the language
(I'd forgotton that one) :lol:

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508416

Postby Lootman » June 20th, 2022, 8:58 am

bungeejumper wrote: when in Rome, to talk as the Romans do. Well, except when they talk about gallons and quarts, because nobody likes getting short measures. The best case yet for metric measures, but one which the world's largest near-island has yet to grasp. ;)

Like anything, it is a breeze once you get used to it. Call a US pint 16 fluid ounces rather than 20, and a US gallon is 4 litres rather than 5. It's just another conversion.

Some of the better American bars (usually brewpubs or craft beer bars) make a point of serving "imperial pints" i.e. 20 fluid ounces. And that great American tradition the pitcher of beer is usually 60 fluid ounces or 3 British-sized pints.

As for gallons being smaller, at least with petrol it hardly matters since "gas" is so much cheaper there. Americans are currently exclaiming outrage that gas is $5 a gallon. With 4 litres in that gallon then that is $1.25 a litre, or a quid a litre. Feel better now? :D

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508417

Postby pje16 » June 20th, 2022, 9:06 am

Lootman wrote:Americans are currently exclaiming outrage that gas is $5 a gallon. With 4 litres in that gallon then that is $1.25 a litre, or a quid a litre. Feel better now? :D

And over here are we misled by a price of £1.98 per litre, think of that as £9 per gallon and we would be more outraged

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508419

Postby UncleEbenezer » June 20th, 2022, 9:39 am

pje16 wrote:I used to know someone who called 1.25
Five and Twenty past
WHAT !!!! :lol:

I routinely do that.

Of course, it's a little context-dependent: if I'm talking to someone grumpy and not very bright then I'd steer clear of it. Whereas if I'm talking to someone sufficiently familiar (like my dad) then I might even extend the idiom: 10:04 is "ten, four and noughty".

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508421

Postby jfgw » June 20th, 2022, 9:44 am

"See you this-afternoon when the big hand is on the six, and the little hand is half-way between the one and the two."

Simple and unambiguous!


Julian F. G. W.

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508424

Postby pje16 » June 20th, 2022, 10:11 am

It means the same thing now, at 10:11 :lol:

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508427

Postby staffordian » June 20th, 2022, 10:14 am

pje16 wrote:I used to know someone who called 1.25
Five and Twenty past
WHAT !!!! :lol:

Something my late father often did!

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Re: I’ll see you at half past

#508429

Postby kiloran » June 20th, 2022, 10:16 am

Time is very simple. Here's a short tutorial from Dave Allen..... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QVPUIRGthI

--kiloran


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