You know what drives me crazy? Signs that say "closing at 12 PM" what time is that?????
According to Royal Museums Greenwich:
'Noon' means 'midday' or 12 o’clock during the day. ‘Midnight’ refers to 12 o’clock during the night. Simple right?
Well, maybe not, especially if you're using a 12-hour clock.
When most people say 12pm, typically they're talking about the middle of the day: 12 noon. When they say 12am, they normally mean 12 midnight.
While some people follow this convention, technically it's not quite right – as you'll see from the definition of am and pm below. To avoid any confusion (and to make sure you arrive on time), it might be best to say 12 noon or 12 midnight instead.
Alternatively, you could use the 24-hour clock system, where 12:00 is noon and 00:00 (or 24:00) is midnight.
Once every month, the correct and the US date formats agree.
...it doesn't take much to drive you crazy!!!
ReplyDeleteI don't know how long its been but certainly in my younger years, there wasn't a 12.00am or 12.00pm. The first few times I heard 12.00pm, it did my head in. Is the strike of midnight am or pm? Neither in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteYou may be used to it, but we have to be very aware about US dates. If I asked a young person what happened on 9/11, they would probably know. If I asked them in what month it happened, they would of course say November. However, if I asked them what the phone emergency number is, it is very likely they would say 911. I've overheard this myself. Ours is 000 but I believe the international number 112 will also work.
Makes me crazy when the city puts up signs saying so and so will be closed until 12PM??????
DeleteNow that IS interesting, about 9/11! I wonder if 112 would work here...