single word requests - What is the proper name for "AM" and "PM"?


I know that AM/PM is for ante/post meridiem, but what is it actually called? Meridian indicator? 12 hour indicator? Something way more clever?



Answer




Oddly enough, this question seems to already have been answered at StackOverflow. The distinction is called the period.



As for the actual meanings of AM/PM, they come from the Latin "ante meridiem" ("before noon") and "post meridiem" ("after noon").


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