# What does "a bit after x" mean to you? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 26, 2026, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409 "2026-05-26T16:31:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/1 "2026-05-26T16:31:59Z")
Inspired by a YouTube video I watched, if someone said, “I’ll be there a bit after 5”. How far after 5 would that cover? If they came at 5:20 would that be more than “a bit”. What does “a bit” in regards to time mean to you? Personally I think “a bit” covers you for about 10 minutes. After that, you done lied. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/2 "2026-05-26T16:35:22Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > Personally I think “a bit” covers you for about 10 minutes. After that, you done lied. At the very most. I’d say more than 5 minutes after is more than a ‘bit’. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/3 "2026-05-26T16:38:11Z")
Ehh, if you show up by 6, I’ll allow it. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/4 "2026-05-26T16:38:42Z")
Depends on both the person and the distance. If you know them, you’ll know whether their personal definition of “a bit” is 5 minutes or an hour. (ETA: great setup line by @scabpicker while I was typing. Thank you!) Likewise, “I’ll be driving 4 hours and should arrive a bit after 5 pm” is different from “I’ll be leaving from 15 minutes away and should arrive a bit after 5pm”. The former inherently has much larger error bars even for a highly punctual person. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/5 "2026-05-26T17:31:40Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Depends on both the person and the distance. Yeah, very much context-dependent. As a general rule, maybe 10-15 minutes? At that point, I’d prefer something like “closer to 5:30.” ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/6 "2026-05-26T17:50:18Z")
We have the same issue with “inna minute”. Some minutes are longer than others. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/7 "2026-05-26T17:50:33Z")
It would need to be before the next :15 increment for me to think of it as a bit. Closer to 5-10 minutes. If it’s 15 minutes past the time, tell me that time. If you’re supposed to be there at 5 but will be there after 5:15, I’d want to know 5:15, 5:30, etc. rather than “a bit later”. If you don’t know how late you’ll be, tell me something like “between 5 and 6 depending on traffic”. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/8 "2026-05-26T17:51:45Z")
With no further details, I would assume as much as fifteen minutes. But as already stated, it could vary depending on the person and the situation. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/9 "2026-05-26T19:26:47Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > It would need to be before the next :15 increment for me to think of it as a bit. Closer to 5-10 minutes. Yeah, I concur here. “A bit” means less than a half hour for SURE and usually less than a quarter hour. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/10 "2026-05-26T20:58:03Z")
7 minutes. Don’t ask me why. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/11 "2026-05-26T21:09:24Z")
Ivy says one minute or a little after the hour, you can count on the fact. My daughters? No way. Mentioning a certain hour, that’s just in the realm of possibility. To them. I live on a tight schedule. Believe me I hate it as bad as others do. I insist on exact times and get groans from the peanut gallery. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/12 "2026-05-26T21:45:01Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > If you know them, you’ll know whether their personal definition of “a bit” is 5 minutes or an hour This. If I needed to know more precisely, I’d ask. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/13 "2026-05-26T22:01:50Z")
A bit is 12.5 minutes. Two bits is 25. That’s how long a shave and a haircut takes. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/14 "2026-05-26T22:24:11Z")
Time is highly relative. What side of the bathroom door are you on? ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2026, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/15 "2026-05-26T23:24:39Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > 7 minutes. Don’t ask me why. Because a “bit” is just one eighth of a byte? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/16 "2026-05-27T00:17:11Z")
Nope. At least not IMO. YMMV of course. Rough time is measured in quarter hours. A bit is the tolerance surrounding any given quarter hour = 15 minutes before you’re closer to the preceding or subsequent quarter hour. So an ISO bit is formally 7 minutes 30 seconds. Or 7 minutes in casual use. As alluded to already by @filmore upthread. We shan’t mention Imperial or SAE bits. Those are different. 🤪 ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/17 "2026-05-27T00:36:46Z")
Unless time was of the essence for whatever the thing is (like delivering a kidney for transplant or some such)…the older I get, the less I care. Anymore I just do my thing And if they ever show up or whatever, then cool. I’ll be at the bar at 7, I’ll say. If they choose to get there then or they show up 10 min before I leave, whatever. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/18 "2026-05-27T00:51:34Z")
It’s all relative. Around here “a bit after” generally means no more than 15 minutes. In Chicago where my sons live, “a bit after” means, “I drive the Dan Ryan/Kennedy/Eisenhower/Tri-State every day and if traffic is normal I can make it roughly at the aforementioned time, but if there’s a car breakdown on any those four highways all 9 million residents in Chicagoland will take surface streets and I’ll be there in two days.” ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/19 "2026-05-27T01:29:49Z")
I would think less than 10 minutes. If it were after that I would consider them to be running a bit late. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409/20 "2026-05-27T03:39:55Z")
Here in Japan, I’ve had people call and ask where I am at three minutes before the appointment time. A bit after would be 5 minutes. More than that and they would specify the time. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-a-bit-after-x-mean-to-you/1030409.md?page=2)