Language survey: "five of nine"

In My Humble Opinion
41

Raised in Ohio, living in Seattle.

I say “five of nine” and it means 8:55. I have encountered English people who didn’t know what I meant, but never Americans. (Until this thread, I guess.)

42

I grew up in Seattle, and never used it or even heard it. Then I moved to the Midwest where I hear it all the time, but it took me FOREVER to keep straight what it meant.

So my answer is now…
a) Minneapolis
b) No
c) 8:55

43
  1. Massachusetts
  2. No, but I hear my peers use it once in a while (I’m 21)
  3. 8:55
44
  1. Baltimore area
  2. That is the only way I’d ever heard it (til I moved to California). Or more commonly “5 of” as most people have a general idea of what hour it is.
  3. 8:55 of course. 9:05 is “5 after”
45
  1. Northern California (San Jose).
  2. I personally wouldn’t say “five of nine,” but I’ve heard plenty of other people say it, including my mother.
  3. 8:55.
46

I’ve never heard the term “five of” used here in Australia. It’s either “five to” or “five past”.

47

Yeah I hear that on British TV and I have no idea either. I would probably guess 5:30 if I had to, but would be very uncertain.

  1. Arizona
  2. use it interchangeably with ‘til’, and like others have said, I’ll use the ‘of’ construction if I’m dropping the hour. “You want me to pick you up at 9:00?” “Hmm, there might be traffic, better make it quarter of.” (Meaning 8:45)
  3. 8:55. I have never heard anyone use it to mean 9:05 and would consider them to be using it wrong if they did.
48

a) NH
b) Yes, and ten and quarter of as well.
c) Given “of” means before, it wouldn’t occur to me that anyone might think it mean after. (US school kids are - or maybe used to be - taught what these terms mean in first grade or so)

49
  1. Texas; Virginia originally
  2. I’ve heard it used, but don’t use it myself; I would use five til nine
  3. 8:55
50

I had a similar experience, but thanks to having grown up with a German in the house I assumed “half five” meant 4:30, as it does in German. Nope.

51
  1. California
  2. Never
  3. I really have no idea what it means.
52

Wisconsin
I wouldn’t say it.
I would think you were talking about Borg.

Around here it’s mostly 5 to nine.

53
  1. Ohio, southeast
  2. Yes, I say it. Also “5 of” by itself, “5 to,” and “5 'til.” Always “quarter of” I think.
  3. 8:55
54

The only thing we ever learned was translating from a hand clock to a digital one. I very clearly remember the assignments: there’d be a picture of a clock with hands, say the minute hand pointed at the 3/15 and the hour hand pointed between the 1/5 and 2/10, and beneath it there’d be a blank digital clock (:) where you had to translate the time, 1:15 in this example.

The first and only time I ever learned about quarter and half stuff was in German class in high school, but it never really stuck. Viertel nach something or other and, um, I don’t remember the other one.

(I’m 23)

55

Central Florida
Yes, I hear it once in awhile but mostly 5 till nine. Myself, usually FiveTuhNine
8:55
Side note: I recall growing up in a pre-digital watch age and all times were given approxiate to the actual, such as
Nearly Nine
'bout Nine
I remember the first encouter with a digital watch and when asked the time, my friend said “it’s 8:53” and I laughed because it was unheard of to be that accurate unless you were kidding around.

Damn I’m old

56

Heh. heh. You drew a butt.

57
  1. Originally from New York (The Bronx)
  2. “Five of nine” would be reasonably common, but “five to nine” is common too
  3. Definitely 8:55