NATASHA: What time is it? We’re going to be late!

TONY: It’s a quarter after seven. We’re on time. Don’t panic.

NATASHA: But I thought we had to be at the restaurant by 7:30 for the surprise party. We’ll never make it there with all this evening traffic.

TONY: Sure we will. Rush hour is almost over. Anyway, the party starts at 8:00. But I do need help with directions. Can you call the restaurant and ask them where we park our car?

•  It’s a quarter after seven. This phrase is one of the most common ways of stating this time. It means: “It’s 15 minutes past 7:00.” Another possibility here is to simply say: “It’s seven fifteen.” In general you can say: “It’s a quarter past the hour.” How do we know the time of day? Look for context clues: “evening traffic.”

•  In the dialog, Natasha and Tony are going to a surprise party. They need to be on time. Therefore there is an element of stress and urgency. When someone is stressed for time you can use expressions like: Don’t worry. / Don’t stress. / We’re fine. / We will be on time.

•  Natasha thinks the surprise party begins at 7:30. There are two different ways to express this time. You may say simply “seven thirty” or “half past seven.” 

•  Rush hour is the time of day—usually in the morning and evening — when traffic is heavy because of people commuting to and from their workplace by bus, by car, by subway, on foot, etc.