Spanish word of the week: hora

la hora NOUN time; hour; period; appointment

You’ll already know hora as time from the basic question ¿Qué hora es? What’s the time?, or as people often ask in Mexico: ¿Me da su hora?

It has other uses in this meaning:

¿A qué hora llega? What time is she arriving?

Nunca llega a la hora. He never arrives on time.

Ha llegado la hora de descansar. The time has come to rest.

And of course, another basic meaning is hour:

Me ha llevado horas hacerlo. It took me hours to do it.

El vuelo dura dos horas y media. The flight lasts two and a half hours.

Hora also has other meanings relating to very specific periods of time at school or college:

Después de inglés tenemos una hora libre. After English we have a free period.

You also use hora when you need to make an appointment with somebody such as a doctor, dentist, or other medical or health professional:

Tengo hora para el dentista. I’ve got an appointment with the dentist.

¿Puede darme hora con la doctora Hernández el jueves que viene? Can you make an appointment for me with Doctor Hernandez for next Thursday?