Quarter Past – Definition with Examples

What Does a Quarter Past Mean?

Quarter past the hour means 15 minutes past the said hour.

We know that 60 minutes makes 1 hour. So, a quarter of an hour means $\frac{1}{4}$ of 60 minutes, which is 15 minutes. When the minute hand of a clock has traveled a quarter way around the clock from the number 12 to the number 3, it covers 15 minutes. This is called quarter past the hour. The hour hand also moves along with the minute hand such that it is a quarter of the way between one number and the next. 

Example: Quarter past 5 means 15 minutes past 5 

                                                or 15 minutes after 5 

                                                or 05:15

Let’s remember! 

Quarter past meaning: 15 minutes after

How to Read the Quarter Past on a Clock?

We can read it by looking at the position of the minute hand on the clock.

If the minute hand is at 3, then we know it is a quarter past, meaning that 15 minutes of the hour are over. We check the hour hand to read the hour. If the hour hand has just crossed a number, we read that number to know what hour it is. 

For example, in the clock below, the minute hand is at 3 and the hour hand is after 7. So, it reads quarter past 7. 

Understanding Quarter Hour 

If we divide the clock into 4 equal parts, each part is one quarter. Since there are 60 minutes in an hour, there are 15 minutes in each quarter of an hour.

When the minute hand is at 3, it shows that $3 \times 5 = 15$ minutes have passed from the start of an hour. The time is said to be a quarter of an hour.

Quarter Hour

• When the minute hand moves from 12 to 3, it covers 1 quarter hour.

• When it moves from 12 to 6, it covers 2 quarter hours.
• When the minute hand moves from 12 to 9, it covers 3 quarter hours.
• When the minute hand moves from 12 to 12, it covers the four quarters of the hour.

It thus covers 4 quarter hours in total. 

Quarter Hour and Half Hour 

When the minute hand is halfway around the clock at 6, it has covered half an hour. When the minute hand moves from 6 to 12, it covers the second half of the hour.

Each half-hour contains 30 minutes, which is two quarter-hours of 15 minutes each. This makes it a total of 60 minutes, which is 1 hour. 

Quarter Hour and One Hour 

When the minute hand moves from 12 to 12, it covers 1 hour. In other words, when the minute hand completes a full round of the clock, it marks the completion of 60 minutes or a full hour. 

In this time, the hour hand moves from one number to the next to mark that 1 hour has passed.

This period of 1 full hour contains 4 quarter hours (of 15 minutes each). 

Fun Facts! 

1. If the minute hand is on the 3, this means it is “quarter past the current hour.”

If the minute hand is on the ,9 this means it is “quarter to the next hour.” 

2. Here’s how “quarter past” and “quarter to” look on a clock!

Conclusion

Learning about quarter past helps kids learn to read the time easily. Looking at a clock, we can easily understand the time by the quarter-hour. Remember, when the minute hand is at 3 on the clock, it is a quarter hour!

Solved Examples 

1. What does quarter past mean? 

Solution: A quarter-hour means 15 minutes past an hour. 

2. What is quarter past 1?

Solution: Quarter past 1 is 15 minutes past the 1 on the clock. So, it reads 01:15.

3. What is the time shown on the clock below?

Solution: The hour hand is at 2, and the minute hand is at 3. So, the time shown on the clock is quarter past 2 or 2:15.

4. How does the time quarter past 4 look on a digital clock?

Solution: Quarter past 4 means 15 minutes past 4. So, it reads as 04:15 on a digital clock.

5. The minute hand of a clock is a quarter way round the clock. The hour hand is at 3. What is the time? Solution: If the minute hand of a clock is a quarter way round the clock, it is 15 minutes past an hour. If the hour hand is at 3, it is 3:15 or 15 minutes past 3.

Practice Problems

Frequently Asked Questions