Telling the time

Telling the time is an important skill in everyday life, but it can be tricky to learn.

There are two common ways of telling the time.

Formal but easier way

         Say the hours first and then the minutes.

         Example: 5:45 - Five forty-five

More popular way

         Say the minutes first and then the hours. 

         Example: 2.15 - fifteen minutes past two

         Example: 7.35 - Twenty five minutes to eight

         Use o'clock only at the full hour.

Hours

The 12-hour-system in English. o'clock (abbreviation: of the clock) only on the hour.
In English there is no 24-hour-system 

Minutes

Multiplies of 5: leave out the word minutes (but: 3.01 → It's one minute past 3.)
Quarter → 15 minutes
Half → 30 minutes

Terms of Time

Early morning - The early hours of the morning, between twelve o'clock at night and the time when the sun rises

Morning - The part of the day from the time when the sun rises or you wake up until the middle of the day or lunch time

Midday - The middle of the day, at or near 12 o'clock; noon

Noon - Twelve o'clock in the day; midday

Afternoon - The afternoon is the part of each day which begins at lunchtime and ends at roughly 5pm or 6pm or maybe just before sunset

Evening -  The period of time at the end of the day, usually from about 6 p.m. to bedtime

Night - The time from dusk to dawn when no sunlight is visible

Midnight - The middle of the night specifically : 12 o'clock at night

Ante meridian (am) - The Latin phrase; Before noon

Post meridian (pm) - The Latin phrase; After noon

Sunset - When the sun is setting (going down)

Sunrise - When the sun is rising (going up)

Twilight - when the sky starts to turn pink and orange but is not dark yet. It happens after sunset and before sunrise.

Sunset is right before twilight, when the sky starts to turn pink and orange but is not dark yet. Sunrise happens when the sun starts to come up in the morning (after morning twilight happens) and has the same orange and pink colors as sunset.

Example

7.15 - fifteen minutes past seven (or) a quarter past seven

11.45 - fifteen minutes to twelve (or) a quarter to twelve

5:30 - half past five

2:20 - twenty past five