What do a.m. and p.m. stand for?

Good evening!

I'm so glad to hear that you guys liked the blog I published yesterday. I got a number of reply messages requesting me to blog on such usages as a.m., p.m. and so on.

Here it is......

Both a.m. and p.m. came from Latin.
a.m. stands for 'ante meridiem' which means before noon.
p.m. represents 'post meridiem', meaning after noon.
Time between midnight(12:00) and noon (12:00) is a.m., and that from noon to midnight is p.m.

e.g. 9 a.m. shows 9 o' clock (daytime) while 9 p.m. stands for 9 o' clock (night-time). And do remember: 12:00 a.m. should be used for midnight and 12:00 p.m. must be used to mean noon.

I'll meet you at 2:00 p.m. in the afternoon (incorrect)
I'll meet you at 2:00 p.m. (correct)
I'll meet you at 2:00 in the afternoon (correct)


The shop closes at 11 p.m. at night (incorrect)
The shop closes at 11 p.m. (correct)
The shop closes at 11 at night (correct)


I get up at 6 a.m. every moring (incorrect)
I get up at 6 every moring (correct)
I get up at 6 a.m.(correct)


                                                                                                                                                                                                        

 NB Experts say that a.m. stands for ante-meridiem, which means "before the Sun has crossed the line." And p.m. means post-meridiem, which means "after the Sun has crossed the line." The 'line' here stands for longitudes (imaginary vertical lines on a map/globe which allow you to pinpoint any place on Earth). They are also called meridians. So if you're standing at a meridian line and the Sun is directly overhead, it's noon (12:00 p.m.) at that spot. Before the Sun arrives overhead, it's a.m.; after it is overhead, it's p.m.!

Well, it's 10:20 p.m. now. So let me wish you all a 'Good night'...
&
Take care... :-) :-)) :-))) :-))))
Jacob (Nova English Campus)