Breakdown of أعمل حتى الساعة الخامسة.
الal
the
ساعةsâ'a
watch / hour
خامسkhâmis
fifth
عمل'amila
to work
حتىhattâ
until
Questions & Answers about أعمل حتى الساعة الخامسة.
Why do we use الخامسة (the fifth) instead of the regular number five?
In Arabic, when we talk about the hour of the day, we use ordinal numbers (first, second, third, etc.) rather than regular counting numbers (one, two, three). So, instead of saying "hour five", you literally say "the fifth hour".
Why does الخامسة have ال (al-) and end with a taa marbuta (ة) here?
When telling time, the number acts as an adjective describing the word الساعة (the hour/clock). Because الساعة is definite (it starts with ال) and feminine (it ends with ة), the adjective الخامسة must match it perfectly by having both as well.
How can I tell that أعمل means "I work" and not "he works" or "she works"?
In the Arabic present tense, the letter at the very beginning of the verb tells you who is doing the action. The أ (alif with a hamza) at the start of أعمل is the prefix for "I". If it were "he works", it would start with a yaa (يعمل), and for "she works" it would start with a taa (تعمل).
Is حتى (until) considered a preposition in Arabic?
Yes! Like other prepositions such as في (in) or إلى (to), حتى affects the noun right after it. This means that if you are pronouncing the short vowels at the ends of words, الساعة would end with a "kasra" (an "i" sound) because it is in the genitive case after the preposition.
Learn أعمل حتى الساعة الخامسة and more in Arabic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free