Breakdown of Le train arrive dans un quart d'heure.
dans
in, inside
de
of / from / any (in negative sentences) / about (concerning)
le train
the train
arriver
to arrive
l'heure
the hour / o'clock (f)
le quart
the quarter
Questions & Answers about Le train arrive dans un quart d'heure.
English says "a quarter of an hour". Why doesn't the French say d'une heure?
Does dans mean "in" or "inside"?
Why is it d'heure instead of de heure?
The letter h in heure is a "silent h", meaning the word acts like it starts with a vowel sound. Because of this, the word de (of) drops its e and attaches to the next word with an apostrophe to make it flow better: d'heure.
How does un quart work when telling the actual time on a clock?
When telling time, like "It is 3:15", you say Il est trois heures et quart (literally: It is three hours and quarter). But when talking about a duration of time, like in this sentence, you use the full phrase un quart d'heure.
Can I use the present tense (arrive) for something happening in the future?
Yes! Just like in English ("The train arrives in 15 minutes"), you can use the present tense in French to talk about scheduled events in the near future.
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