Learn Portuguese (Portugal): É uma da tarde.

É uma da tarde.

It is one in the afternoon.

Breakdown of É uma da tarde.

ser

to be

of / from / by (means of transport) / wearing (attire)

one

a tarde

the afternoon

Questions & Answers about É uma da tarde.

Why do we use É here instead of São like in other time expressions?

We use the singular verb É (It is) because one o'clock is singular (one hour). For all other hours from two onwards, you must use the plural São (literally "They are").

I learned that telling time uses the preposition a (like às). Why isn't it used here?

We use a or its contractions like à or às when saying at what time an event happens (for example, "The class is at one"). But when you are just stating what time it is right now, you only use the verb ser, which is É in this sentence.

Why is the number one written as feminine (uma)?

When telling time, the number describes the hidden word hora (hour). Because hora is a feminine word in Portuguese, we must use the feminine number uma instead of the masculine um.

Why does the sentence use da tarde to mean "in the afternoon"?

When specifying AM or PM right after stating the hour, Portuguese uses the preposition de (of). Here, it combines with the feminine "the" (a) to make the contraction da. You are literally saying "one of the afternoon".