How to say "hour" in Japanese

• 時じCommon
  suffixThe 'o'clock' sense: read じ, this is what you use for clock readings, as in saying it is three o'clock or asking what time it is.
  私は１０時じごろ寝ねついた。↗

  I went to sleep about 10 o'clock.
• 時ときJLPT N5approx.Common
  nounThe standalone word, read とき, means 'time' or 'moment'; its 'hour' sense is figurative — 'the hour has come' — not a clock reading.
  １２才さいの時とき彼かれは声変こえがわりした。↗

  His voice broke when he was twelve.
• 時刻じこくJLPT N3approx.Common
  nounRefers to a specific point in time — the exact hour or clock time of day. Choose it when the precise time itself is what you mean.
  そろそろ寝ねる時刻じこくだ。↗

  It's almost time to go to bed.
• アワーJLPT N1approx.Common
  nounA loanword for 'hour'. By itself it is seldom the word you want; it appears mainly inside borrowed set phrases, while ordinary uses of 'hour' take the native words.
• 時分じぶんCommon
  nounMeans a time or hour of the day taken loosely, and by extension a season or period; it points to a rough time rather than an exact clock reading.
  彼かれは若わかい時分じぶんにはバイオリンを弾ひいていた。↗

  He used to play the violin in his youth.

For clock readings use 時（じ）; 時（とき） means 'time' or 'moment'; 時刻 names an exact clock time; 「アワー」 appears in borrowed set phrases; 時分 covers a loose time of day or season.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 時じhour
• 時ときtime
• 時刻じこくtime
• アワーhour
• 時分じぶんtime
• 時辰じしんtime
• 時間じかんhour
• エイチhour