Questions & Answers about Es ist Viertel nach vier.
Why do we say Viertel instead of ein Viertel like "a quarter" in English?
When telling time in German, you drop the article ein (a). You just use the word Viertel directly, making it literally "quarter past four".
Why is the word Viertel capitalized here?
Viertel means "quarter" and is a noun in German. Since all German nouns are capitalized, it gets a capital letter in time expressions too.
Does nach always mean "past"?
When telling time, yes! It translates perfectly to "past" or "after" the hour. You might remember nach meaning "to" when talking about traveling to countries or cities, but on a clock it always means "past".
Can I say this if it is 16:15 (4:15 PM) on a digital clock?
Yes! When speaking casually with words like Viertel, halb, vor, or nach, Germans always use the 12-hour clock. The listener will know from context if it is morning or afternoon.