5 to 9pm, because the sunset varies so wildly here (4pm to 9pm) that people usually don't use the actual sunset. It's basically "after traditional white collar working hours; before a plausible time for adults to start thinking about getting ready for bed." Answer from Deleted User on reddit.com
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YourDictionary
yourdictionary.com › vocabulary › versus › meanings › afternoon vs. evening: it's time to differentiate
Afternoon vs. Evening: It's Time to Differentiate | YourDictionary
December 5, 2022 - This meeting is at 2:00 in the afternoon. (noun) I’m just drinking my afternoon tea. (adjective) It rained all afternoon. (noun) Evening lasts from the time the sun sets until around 8:00-9:00 p.m.
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AmazingTalker
en.amazingtalker.com › questions › 1158
What time is "afternoon" and when is "evening" ?
It's already 7 in the evening. ... The afternoon is the time between 1 to 5 pm, the Evening is the part between 5 to 7 pm, and Night is the time from 9 to 4 pm.
Discussions

What's the difference between evening and afternoon?
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November 29, 2022
What times (hours) of day do you consider to be “morning”, afternoon”, “evening”, “night”, etc?
I just re-read this and yes I can see how crazy I sound:/ but still curious to see what you guys say:) More on reddit.com
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October 24, 2025
People also ask

What time do you say good afternoon?
We start saying good afternoon rather than “good morning” when the time reaches 12 p.m. (midday). · What time is afternoon depends on individual perceptions, however. For instance, at the overlap between “late afternoon” and “early evening” at around 5–6 p.m., we are perhaps more likely to greet people with “good afternoon” rather than “good evening” if we are still at work or if it is still light outside. · QuillBot’s free Grammar Checker will help you to pick up typos in your texts, such as writing “good afternoon” as one word instead of two.
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quillbot.com › home › what time is afternoon? | definition & use
What Time Is Afternoon? | Definition & Use
Is 12 p.m. afternoon?
12 p.m. is the start of the afternoon. It is a point in time that is also called “midday” or “noon” and is expressed as 12:00 in 24-hour clock. It comes one minute after 11:59 a.m. · 12 a.m., on the other hand, is also called “midnight” and is expressed as 00:00 in 24-hour clock. · On a related note, what time is afternoon is often a matter of personal perception. For instance, if we are still at work and it is still light outside, we might think of 6 p.m. as “late afternoon” rather than “early evening.” · Have you tried QuillBot’s free Paraphraser? It’s great for finding alternative expressio
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quillbot.com › home › what time is afternoon? | definition & use
What Time Is Afternoon? | Definition & Use
What does this afternoon mean?
This afternoon means either “later today in the afternoon” (when said in the morning), “earlier today in the afternoon” (when said in the evening), or “now” (when said when the afternoon in question is in progress). · This afternoon in a sentence examples · Are you coming to the careers event this afternoon? [Speaking in the morning] · What did you think of the careers event this afternoon? [Speaking in the evening] · I’m delighted to welcome you all here this afternoon. [Speaking during the event] · On a related note, what time is afternoon sometimes depends on the context. Someone who is sti
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quillbot.com
quillbot.com › home › what time is afternoon? | definition & use
What Time Is Afternoon? | Definition & Use
5 to 9pm, because the sunset varies so wildly here (4pm to 9pm) that people usually don't use the actual sunset. It's basically "after traditional white collar working hours; before a plausible time for adults to start thinking about getting ready for bed." Answer from Deleted User on reddit.com
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Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Afternoon
Afternoon - Wikipedia
3 weeks ago - Afternoon is the period from noon to sunset or evening. It is the time when the sun is descending from its peak in the sky to somewhat before its terminus at the horizon in the west.
Find elsewhere
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Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Evening
Evening - Wikipedia
3 weeks ago - The end of evening is around the time when one goes to bed, or around 9 pm, depending on context.
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Encyclopedia Britannica
britannica.com › dictionary › eb › qa › parts-of-the-day-early-morning-late-morning-etc
Parts of the Day: Early morning, late morning, etc. | Britannica Dictionary
Parts of the Day · Morning 5 am to 12 pm (noon) Early morning 5 to 8 am · Late morning 11 am to 12pm · Afternoon 12 pm to 5 pm · Early afternoon 1 to 3pm · Late afternoon 4 to 5pm · Evening 5 pm to 9 pm ·
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Facebook
facebook.com › learnenglishwithkatie › posts › this-is-about-how-we-use-the-words-morning-afternoon-evening-and-night-in-britis › 1248885850075209
This is about how we use the words “morning”, “afternoon”, ...
I would say around 5.00 or 6.00 p.m. but I think it depends a bit on the time of year. The afternoon feels longer in the summer when we have more hours of daylight. ... The evening begins when the afternoon ends, around 5.00 in the winter or 6.00 in the summer.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/askuk › what's the difference between evening and afternoon?
r/AskUK on Reddit: What's the difference between evening and afternoon?
November 29, 2022 -

This is something that I don't understand because I was never taught the correct way.

Now and then when I'm out walking in the street and I pass someone else, like a dog walker for example a short but polite passing greeting is exchanged.

"Morning." one of us would say. For the other to respond with "Morning" in return. Or "Evening" or "Afternoon" depending on the time of day.

Basically I've only heard "Morning" spoke at anytime up to 11:30am.

However, as soon as it turn 12pm midday then it becomes "Evening" or "Afternoon".

Is there a difference between "Evening" and "Afternoon" or are they interchangeable?

UPDATE: I've been going through the replies and noticed the general concensus is that afternoon is between 12pm and 5pm with evening being between 5pm and 9pm. Not to mention the consensus that people don't like people for not knowing this.

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QuillBot
quillbot.com › home › what time is afternoon? | definition & use
What Time Is Afternoon? | Definition & Use
November 11, 2025 - Afternoon starts at 12 p.m. (midday) and finishes at about 5 or 6 p.m., when evening starts. However, as “afternoon” and “evening” are not precisely defined parts of the day, it’s best to clarify exactly what time you mean by “afternoon” with exact times when making plans and ...
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MomentumDash
get.momentumdash.help › hc › en-us › articles › 115007629867-When-do-the-greetings-Good-morning-afternoon-and-evening-change
When do the greetings (Good morning, afternoon, and evening) change? – Help Center
Momentum Dashboard's daily greetings are set to change at the following times: Good Morning 5:00 AM — 11:59 AM Good Afternoon 12:00 PM — 4:59 PM Good Evening 5:00 PM — 4:59 AM What is Momentum Da...
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Vocabulary.com
vocabulary.com › dictionary › afternoon
Afternoon - Definition, Meaning & Synonyms | Vocabulary.com
The afternoon is the time of day that starts mid-day and ends in the evening. If you have an afternoon appointment, it's probably some time between 12:00 and 5:00 p.m.
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Quora
quora.com › What-time-is-afternoon-and-when-is-evening-Is-there-a-standard-and-if-so-who-made-it
What time is afternoon and when is evening? Is there a standard and if so who made it? - Quora
For example, some people prefer to use "afternoon" to refer specifically to midday (12 p.m.), while others like using it as an all-encompassing term that includes both midday and evening hours—and maybe even extends into late night.
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Wikihow
wikihow.com › education and communications › studying › english › english vocabulary › evening vs. night: here's how they're different
Evening vs. Night: Here's How They're Different
January 27, 2026 - It’s roughly defined as the few hours after sunset but before the sky turns fully dark.[1] X Research source · Night is when the sky turns fully dark and all sunlight is blocked by the Earth’s shadow.
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NMC CODE
mihiraa.com › when-to-say-good-morning-good-afternoon-good-evening-and-good-night
When to Say Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Evening, and Good Night? – MIHIRAA
December 12, 2024 - Good evening is the most appropriate greeting for the time period between 12:00 AM and 4:00 AM, especially during night shifts or early morning hours. This is because it acknowledges the late hour and the start of the night. ... Use “Good afternoon” until around 5:00 PM, after which “Good ...
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QuillBot
quillbot.com › home › what time is evening? | definition & use
What Time Is Evening? | Definition & Use
February 2, 2026 - The afternoon starts at “noon” (12 p.m./12:00) and finishes when the evening starts at about 5 or 6 p.m. “Afternoon” and “evening” time are not precise concepts, so when you are making arrangements, it is best to clarify what you mean with exact times.
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Quora
quora.com › What-is-the-beginning-of-morning-afternoon-and-evening
What is the beginning of morning, afternoon, and evening? - Quora
And therefore, Afternoon begins a moment after 12 noon. Evening is the other subjective, inconsistent... ... Former In Charge of Final Inspection Dept. · Author has 3.2K answers and 1.8M answer views · 6y · Originally Answered: What timeframes ...
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Quora
quora.com › What-comes-after-afternoon-but-before-evening
What comes after 'afternoon' but before 'evening'? - Quora
Apparently this usage of merging afternoon and evening together as evening is fairly old and dates back to 1587. The OED states this usage is now regional. ... Time of the day between noon and evening The Türkenschanzpark in Vienna during the early afternoon Visitors to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City during the late afternoon Afternoon is the time between noon and sunset or evening .
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/time › what times (hours) of day do you consider to be “morning”, afternoon”, “evening”, “night”, etc?
r/Time on Reddit: What times (hours) of day do you consider to be “morning”, afternoon”, “evening”, “night”, etc?
October 24, 2025 -

As the title says. My daughter and I were having a conversation earlier, and she asked me to order something from Amazon; I was busy so I told her “please remind me this afternoon”. She responded by telling me it is already afternoon (it was 12:10pm). So this made me start to think about times of day and if there is a standard, so I googled it and that was useless because it was kind of all over the place or not specific enough… no real standard definition that I could find.

I would like to preface this by saying this is how I personally reference the different “time periods” throughout the day, it has nothing to do with any proper definitions or scientific research, this is just how I, myself, will reference the different time periods throughout the day :)

So I’m thinking maybe everyone kinda has their own personal “range” they use for specific times of the day? Anyway, I thought it would be fun to see what hours everyone else uses/considers to be morning/noon/afternoon/evening/night/early morning etc or whatever … so here’s mine:

Ok, so to me… (and this is just how I personally define the times of day, when I’m speaking about morning/noon/night etc) goes kind of like this:

morning is like 5am-12pm noon, noon is like 11am-1pm, afternoon is anytime between 1-5pm, evening is between 5-9pm, nighttime is after 9pm til like 2am, then it’s early morning from like 2-5am. So, for example, if it’s like 11am, and I ask my daughter “will you please remind me this afternoon”, I usually mean sometime between 1-3pm, but if I say “will you please remind me later this afternoon” that usually means anytime between 3-5ish pm.

am I psycho? Or does everyone have like a set period of time (in hours) that they kind of use to describe the times of day?

TLDR: What hours of the day do you consider when referencing the different time periods throughout a 24 hour period? For example: Morning/Noon/Afternoon/Evening/Night/Late Night/Early Morning