“What Time” vs. “At What Time” – Which is Correct?

English can be hard at times, and it can be difficult to figure out whether you should use “At what time” or simply omit the preposition and write “What time”. This article will explain if there’s any difference between the two forms, and the context in which they’d be used.

Is It “What Time” Or “At What Time”?

Both can be utilized, as “What time” acts as a shortened version of “At what time”. The preposition “At” is used to denote time, but for the sake of brevity people abbreviate “At what time” into “What time”. The former is the fully correct version, but the latter isn’t incorrect.

“What time” doesn’t always mean the same thing as “At what time”. For example, the common sentence “What time is it” doesn’t make sense as “At what time is it” most of the time.

That being said, any time that you would say “At what time”, you could probably abbreviate it into “What time”, as many people tend to do.

The main difference between them would be that “At what time” is considered more formal and precise, while “What time” is more casual.

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When Should I Use “What Time”?

“What time” means the same thing as “At what time”, but it’s colloquial and casual. It should be used in casual conversation.

It’s an equally valid way of requesting at what time an event occurs as “At what time”, but the fact that it’s abbreviated means that you should probably use it in more casual, relaxed contexts.

If you don’t have to be particularly precise with the time, then “What time” is the perfect expression to use.

Here’s some example sentences with the proper use for “What Time”:

1. What time will you be arriving at the restaurant?
2. What time is it going to be when our plane gets to the airport?

3. What time was it when you heard the loud noise above your apartment?
4. What time did you get home from the dinner party?
5. What time was it when I was born?
6. What time will you be clocking out?
7. What time did she leave this morning?
8. What time did we agree on for the conference tomorrow?
9. What time will he be knocking on our door?
10. What time will the store be open?

When Should I Use “At What Time”?

“At what time” should be used to ask the specific time that an event happened, is happening, or will happen. It should be used in more formal situations, where being precise is important.

“At what time” is the standard phrase to ask the time for an event, and is seen in more business-like contexts when compared to merely “What time”.

Here are some examples that showcase the proper use of “At what time”:

1. At what time did you see your boss arrive this morning?
2. At what time will the rest of our group get here?

3. At what time should we set the next meeting?
4. At what time will he reply to our email?
5. At what time did the power go out last week?
6. At what time will you be available for an interview?
7. Following up on our last email, at what time will this week’s case files be available?
8. At what time will the bank call back regarding our issue?

9. At what time did you last hear from the detective?
10. At what time will we close down tonight?

Is “What Time” Or “At What Time” Most Formal?

“At what time” is the most formal way of saying this. “What time” is the more casual alternative.

You will often find that business emails use “At what time”, as it is the standard in a lot of businesses and companies.

“What time” is, by contrast, more used in casual conversation, where the exactitude of the language you use matters less.

Are “What Time” And “At What Time” Interchangeable?

Yes, while “What time” is more casual and “At what time” is more formal, they are interchangeable expressions that hold the same meaning, just one is more detailed than the other.

In a conversation, you could use either “What time” or “At what time” and the meaning of your sentence would be equally understood.

Is “What Time” Or “At What Time” Used The Most?

According to information compiled by the Google Ngram Viewer, “What time” is used significantly more than “At what time”.

This makes sense when you consider that the contexts that would warrant the formality that “At what time” is associated with are more limited, when compared to more casual contexts.

The chart showcases the fact that “What time” has always been used more than “At what time”, but at a certain point in the late 1970s, use of “What time” increased radically.

This extreme growth only stopped in 2017, when “What time” hit its peak use. It’s decreased in use since then, but the gap between it and “At what time” is still immense.

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Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.