French Phrase
À quelle heure ?
Meaning
A concise, polite way to ask 'At what time?' in French. It can refer to the start time of an event, a meeting, a transport departure, or simply the current time in a conversational context.
When to use
Use this question when you need to know the scheduled time of something—appointments, movies, trains, classes, or any activity that has a set start time. It works in both formal and neutral settings.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Àquelleheure
À (preposition)
Used to introduce the time at which something happens; equivalent to 'at' in English.
quelle (interrogative adjective)
Matches the gender and number of the noun it modifies; here it agrees with the feminine noun 'heure'.
heure (feminine noun)
Means 'hour' or 'time' and is always feminine, so the interrogative adjective must be 'quelle', not 'quel'.
🗨In Conversation
À quelle heure ?
At what time?
Le film commence à 20 h.
The movie starts at 8 p.m.
✕Common Mistakes
Quel heure ?
‘Heure’ is feminine, so the interrogative adjective must be ‘quelle’, not ‘quel’.
De quelle heure ?
The preposition for asking about a specific time is ‘à’, not ‘de’.
À quelle heure ? (pronounced without liaison)
In spoken French the liaison between ‘quelle’ and ‘heure’ is natural; omitting it can sound overly stiff.
↔Alternatives
À quelle heure est‑ce que le film commence ?
At what time does the movie start?
C’est à quelle heure ?
What time is it?
Quel est l’horaire ?
What’s the schedule?
Cultural Tip
In everyday French, people often add a little extra context, e.g., 'À quelle heure on se retrouve ?' (What time shall we meet?). In very informal speech, you might hear 'C’est à quelle heure ?' which is acceptable among friends but less formal than the pure 'À quelle heure ?'. Remember that 'heure' is feminine, so the correct interrogative form is 'quelle', not 'quel'.