Newsgroup: it.cultura.linguistica.inglese
Titolo: What time... or at what time?

Hello, I'm trying to write in English...please, possibly correct me where
I'm wrong.
I have some doubts about whether to use "what time" or "at what time". I
believe that the first form is correct, but what about the second one?
Are there sentences in which you have to use "at what time" or it's always
wrong to add "at"?

 ha scritto nel messaggio

Sorry, I forgot to mention the most importan thing : I meant to know how to 
use "what time" in questions.
For example "what time does the train leave?". Would it be still correct to 
say "at what time .... ?" 

 say "at what time .... ?" 
	Bisogna dire "At what time does the train leave?" (un altro esempio qui 
: 
http://tinyurl.com/d6y5bx
), ma per me, č piuttosto meglio dire "When 
does the train leave?".
PPHN
A Hay, A Hay, A Hay

 the train leave?".
Thanks for your answer.
I am confused because I see that it's often used the form without "at"
http://tinyurl.com/b9lglm
and here, they say in both ways:
http://www.veronissima.com/sito_inglese/html/italiano_in_stazione.html

 wrote in message 
news:498253fe$0$11372$5fc...@news.tiscali.it...

Alberto,
Your English is much better than my Italian. It is also better than most of 
my countrymen!
Most Americans will ask, "What time...?" or "When...?" when they mean "At 
what time...?"
"What time is it?", but "[At] what time (or When) does the game start?"
Richard

 B-at 10:00pm cet (at ten pm cet)
Well, thanks for answering.
I can see the difference between "what time" and "at what time", if you
translate it word by word in Italian.
But, as I understand, it's not always accurate to translate literally.
In italian we say "vai a casa", but would it be correct to translate it as 
"go to home!"?
Anyway,I  heard some British people saying :
"what time is departure?"
"what time is arrival?"
"what time is the dinner tonight at the restaurant?"
or here, from a dictionary,
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/time
time, noun
n. 3 "what time are you going?" (a che ora vai?)
they are all sentences in which you would use "A che ora", speaking in
Italian, but they don't have "at" there.
So are they speaking bad english? are there exceptions? are they both 
correct forms?

 correct forms?
I don't think there's anything wrong with "What time..." without "at"
at the beginning.
Indeed "What time is dinner?" sounds normal, but "At what time is
dinner?" sounds pretty odd
to me.
Perhaps in a very very formal context. "At what time would Your
Lordship like dinner to be served?"
Hmm. "What time...?" Maybe the "at" version is better here.

 "What time is it?", but "[At] what time (or When) does the game start?"
My doubt actually came from an English language course, in wich the teacher 
(a British woman) says "what time is departure/arrival?", to provide 
examples about question words 

):

No, it's not wrong to add 'at', but in most cases in ordinary speech 'at' 
isn't necessary in the example you provided.
What time does the train leave?
What time is dinner?
What time did you finish?
What time do we get there? [arrive]
-What time do you have? (What time is it [by your watch]?)-
for all examples but the last, you could say 'at what time' but it's not the 
way most people ask in the US.
-- 
Joe/Joey da New York

 B-you know, it usually starts at 23:OOcet (at twentythree cet)
Well, it usually starts at 23:00
etc.


 Hmm. "What time...?" Maybe the "at" version is better here.
Lol, I never heard saying "Your Lordship", before!
I'll bear in mind it, anyway, just in case I will ever find myself
addressing some Lordship :)

 way most people ask in the US.
Thank you Joey Dee