How Do You Say 7:45 in Spanish? | Nail The Time Talk

In Spanish, 7:45 is most often “son las ocho menos cuarto,” and in much of the Americas you’ll hear “un cuarto para las ocho.”

When you say a time out loud, you’re not just sharing numbers. You’re showing you can follow the rhythm people use every day. And 7:45 is one of those moments where Spanish does things a little differently than English.

This page gets you to a clean, natural way to say 7:45, then shows the other forms you’ll run into on trips, at work, in class, and in messages. You’ll leave with a few ready-to-use lines you can drop into real chat.

How Do You Say 7:45 in Spanish? In Real Conversations

The go-to phrasing treats 7:45 as “a quarter to eight.” In Spanish, that comes out as son las ocho menos cuarto. You’re naming the next hour (ocho) and subtracting a quarter hour (menos cuarto).

In many countries across the Americas, you’ll often hear the same idea said as un cuarto para las ocho. It means “a quarter toward eight.” Both forms are standard in everyday speech, and both get understood widely.

If you want a safe default that fits many settings, start with son las ocho menos cuarto. If the people around you use para more, mirror that. Matching the local habit is the fastest way to sound natural.

Why 7:45 Points To The Next Hour

English speakers often anchor on the hour that already started: “seven forty-five.” Spanish often anchors on the hour that’s coming when you’re past :30. So 7:45 points to 8:00, not 7:00.

That’s why you’ll hear ocho in the phrase. Once you get used to that shift, other times like 6:50 and 9:55 start to feel easy too.

Choose The Right Verb: “Es” Vs “Son”

Spanish switches between singular and plural when telling time. With one o’clock, it’s singular: es la una. With every other hour, it’s plural: son las dos, son las ocho.

So for 7:45 you’ll usually say son las ocho menos cuarto or son las ocho plus the minutes. This agreement pattern is a common slip for learners, so it’s worth drilling until it feels automatic.

Saying 7:45 In Spanish With Two Common Styles

You’ll run into two main styles for 7:45. One uses the quarter-hour phrase, and one uses numbers. The quarter-hour style is the one you’ll hear most in casual talk.

Style 1: The Quarter-Hour Phrase

• Son las ocho menos cuarto. (Quarter to eight.)
• Son un cuarto para las ocho. (Quarter to eight.)

The second line is common in much of the Americas, and it pairs nicely with the matching :15 phrase y cuarto. If you’re learning a Latin American variety, keep both in your pocket.

Style 2: Straight Minutes

• Son las siete cuarenta y cinco.
• Son las 7:45. (often in quick speech, tied to a schedule)

This style pops up in schools, on announcements, and when someone wants to be crystal-clear. It’s easy to build once you know the numbers, yet it can sound a bit stiff in a friendly chat where people default to menos cuarto.

Spain, Latin America, And What You’ll Hear

Across Spain, menos cuarto is common for :45. Across much of Latin America, you’ll hear both menos cuarto and un cuarto para, with local preferences that vary by region and even by family.

The good news: if you can understand both, you’re set. If you want to sanity-check what’s treated as standard, the Diccionario panhispánico de dudas entry on “hora” lays out the main fraction phrases, including y cuarto, y media, and menos cuarto.

Small Details That Make 7:45 Sound Natural

Once you’ve got the core phrase, a few small choices can make your Spanish feel smoother. These aren’t fancy tricks. They’re the little habits native speakers lean on without thinking.

Add “De La Mañana” Or “De La Tarde” When It Matters

Spanish often leaves AM/PM unstated if context makes it obvious. Still, there are times when clarity helps: a meeting time, a pickup time, a train time.

You can tag the time like this: son las ocho menos cuarto de la mañana or … de la noche. In many places, de la tarde covers late afternoon, while de la noche covers evening and night.

Use “A Las” For Plans, Not For The Time Itself

When someone asks the current time, you answer with es or son. When you talk about when something happens, you often switch to a las.

La clase es a las ocho menos cuarto.El vuelo sale a las siete cuarenta y cinco.

That tiny swap keeps your sentences sounding idiomatic, especially when you’re booking things or making plans.

Write 7:45 Correctly In Spanish

In writing, Spanish uses either a colon (7:45) or the symbol h in some styles (7.45 h in certain formats). Rules vary by style guide and region, so match the format used around you.

If you want the spelling-and-punctuation side straight from a standard reference, RAE’s notes on writing time expressions cover the common quarter-hour wordings and how they appear in text.

Common 7:45 Mistakes And Easy Fixes

Most slip-ups with 7:45 aren’t about grammar charts. They come from translating word-for-word from English. Here are the ones that show up the most, plus a fix you can use right away.

Mistake 1: Saying “Son Las Siete Menos Cuarto”

This sounds like you’re aiming for “quarter to seven,” which is 6:45, not 7:45. For 7:45, the hour you say is ocho: son las ocho menos cuarto.

Mistake 2: Mixing “Es” With Plural Hours

Es las ocho clashes in standard Spanish. Use son las ocho for 8 o’clock and for 7:45 phrased toward eight.

Mistake 3: Adding “A” After “Cuarto”

In some places, learners try un cuarto a las ocho. Standard usage prefers un cuarto para las ocho when you’re pointing toward the next hour. This preference is noted in RAE’s guidance on time expressions.

Mistake 4: Overloading The Sentence

When you’re nervous, it’s easy to stack extra words: son como las ocho menos cuarto más o menos. Drop the padding. A simple, direct line sounds more fluent.

Time Talk You’ll Actually Use Around 7:45

Knowing the phrase is one thing. Being able to use it while you’re walking, texting, or running late is the real test. These mini-lines are built for that.

Ask And Answer

—¿Qué hora es?—Son las ocho menos cuarto.

—¿Tienes hora?—Sí, son las siete cuarenta y cinco.

Plans And Deadlines

Quedamos a las ocho menos cuarto.Llego a las 7:45.Salgo de casa a las siete cuarenta y cinco.

Running Late

Son las ocho menos cuarto y todavía estoy aquí.Si son las 7:45, salgo ya.

Reference Table For Quarter Hours And Nearby Times

The easiest way to lock in 7:45 is to see it next to the times around it. Notice how Spanish shifts after :30 and starts pointing toward the next hour.

Clock Time	Common Spoken Form	Notes You’ll Hear
7:00	Son las siete (en punto)	“En punto” stresses exactness
7:15	Son las siete y cuarto	Often shortened in fast speech
7:30	Son las siete y media	Common across regions
7:40	Son las siete cuarenta	Number style stays anchored on “siete”
7:45	Son las ocho menos cuarto	Points to the next hour
7:45	Son un cuarto para las ocho	Common in much of the Americas
7:50	Son las ocho menos diez	Another “toward the next hour” pattern
7:55	Son las ocho menos cinco	Often paired with “ya” when you’re in a rush
8:00	Son las ocho (en punto)	Same plural agreement rule

That table gives you a mental map. If you can say 7:15, 7:30, and 7:45 without pausing, your brain starts treating the whole hour as one pattern instead of a list of separate facts.

How Spanish Learners Can Practice 7:45 Without Overthinking

You don’t need long drills to get this right. You need short reps that match how the phrase shows up in real life: a glance at a phone, a glance at a wall clock, a quick reply.

Use A Two-Step Drill

1. Say the next hour out loud: las ocho.
2. Add the fraction: menos cuarto or un cuarto para.

Do it ten times, spaced through the day. Your tongue gets used to the switch from seven to eight, and the hesitation drops.

Swap In Real Context Words

Practice with the phrases you’ll actually say around 7:45:

• Son las ocho menos cuarto y me voy.
• Nos vemos a las ocho menos cuarto.
• A las 7:45 empieza la reunión.

If you want more confirmation on common teaching patterns for time-telling, SpanishDict’s lesson on telling time in Spanish shows the core quarter-hour phrases and several standard lines learners practice.

Second Table: Pick The Best 7:45 Wording For The Moment

Sometimes more than one phrasing fits, and you just want to choose fast. Use this as a quick selector based on where you are and what you’re doing.

Situation	What To Say	Why It Fits
Casual talk with friends	Son las ocho menos cuarto	Sounds natural in everyday chat
Many Latin American settings	Son un cuarto para las ocho	Matches a common regional habit
Schedules, announcements, class	Son las siete cuarenta y cinco	Clear, direct, number-based
Talking about a plan	Quedamos a las ocho menos cuarto	Uses “a las” for event timing
Texting a time quickly	7:45	Fast, standard in messages
When AM/PM could confuse	… de la mañana / … de la noche	Adds clarity without extra math

A One-Minute Script To Lock In 7:45

Read this out loud once or twice, then change the details to match your day. It’s short on purpose. That makes it easier to reuse.

—¿Qué hora es?
—Son las ocho menos cuarto.
—Uf, voy tarde. Quedamos a las ocho menos cuarto en la entrada.
—Vale. Llego en cinco minutos.

If you want to check what Spanish style guides say about the quarter-hour phrases and other common time forms, RAE’s “Buen uso del español” section on expressing time summarizes the usual options used in speech.

Once you’ve said the script a few times, you’ll notice something: 7:45 stops being a special case. It becomes a normal part of the hour pattern, and your brain reaches for it fast.