Chinese · Numbers & Time
小时
xiǎoshí
Hour
Beginnernoun
Definition
A period of sixty minutes.
Example
我学了两个小时中文。
I studied Chinese for two hours.
Etymology
'小时' (xiǎoshí) combines '小' (xiǎo), meaning 'small', with '时' (shí), meaning 'time' or 'hour', emphasizing a smaller division of time.
How & Where It’s Used
'小时' is commonly used in both spoken and written contexts to refer to an hour and is appropriate in both formal and informal settings.