French Phrase
L'école commence à quelle heure ?
Meaning
This sentence asks for the specific time when school begins. It is a neutral, everyday question used to clarify schedules.
When to use
Use it when you need to know the start time of a class, a school day, or any educational program. It works in both formal settings (talking to a teacher or administrator) and informal chats with classmates.
✦Grammar Breakdown
L'écolecommenceàquelleheure?
Article contraction
The definite article "le" contracts with a vowel‑starting noun, giving "l'" before "école".
Présent de commencer
"commence" is the third‑person singular present of "commencer" (to start).
Preposition "à" for time
Use "à" to indicate a point in time, e.g., "à 8h" (at 8 o’clock).
"Quelle heure" question
"Quelle" agrees in gender with "heure" (feminine) and together they form the set phrase "quelle heure?" meaning "what time?"
Inversion vs. "à quelle heure"
In spoken French the preposition "à" often precedes the question word, forming the fixed expression "à quelle heure".
🗨In Conversation
L'école commence à quelle heure ?
What time does school start?
Elle commence à huit heures du matin.
It starts at eight o’clock in the morning.
✕Common Mistakes
L'école commence à quel heure ?
"heure" is feminine, so the interrogative adjective must be "quelle".
L'école est à quelle heure ?
Use "commence" (to start) rather than "est" (to be) for an event's beginning.
L' école commence à quelle heure ?
Do not insert a space after the apostrophe; the contraction is "l'école".
↔Alternatives
À quelle heure débute l'école ?
At what time does school begin?
L'école, c'est à quelle heure ?
School, what time is it?
Quel est l'horaire de début de l'école ?
What is the school's start time?
Cultural Tip
In France, most primary schools open around 8:30 am, while secondary schools often start at 8:00 am. In Quebec, start times can be later, especially for high schools. When asking this question to a teacher, a polite tone (using "s’il vous plaît" after the question) is appreciated: "L'école commence à quelle heure, s’il vous plaît ?"