late afternoon
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- 1 late afternoon
This word refers to the evening or late-afternoon period before night. It can name the time of day itself or indicate when an action takes place.
late afternoon
The period from late afternoon until around the beginning of night.
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ตอนเย็นไปเดินเล่นกันไหม tɔɔn yen pay dəən lên kan mǎy Do you want to go for a walk this evening? ตอนเย็นไปเดินเล่นกันไหม details
Learning notes
Explanation
ตอนเย็น combines ตอน, meaning a section or period of time, with เย็น, which can mean “cool” or “evening.” It can be remembered as the part of the day when the air becomes cooler. It is grammatically a time noun, but it very often functions adverbially to say when something happens, as in ฉันจะกลับบ้านตอนเย็น (“I’ll go home in the evening”). It may also appear at the beginning of a sentence when the time is being emphasized. It is a neutral, everyday expression used naturally in both conversation and writing.
Usage
It is commonly used when discussing evening plans, appointments, trips home, shopping, meals, or weather. วันนี้ตอนเย็น means “this evening,” while พรุ่งนี้ตอนเย็น means “tomorrow evening.”
Caution
The exact hours covered by ตอนเย็น vary with context and season. For nighttime after the evening period, use ตอนกลางคืน. Also, ตอนเย็น names a time of day; “dinner” is อาหารเย็น or ข้าวเย็น.