past midnight VS untill after midnight

[majid72]

Hello'

Which of the sentences is right?

1- I studied past midnight .
2- I studied untill /till after midnight.

Thanks.

[colloquium]

Hello'

Which of the sentences is right?

1- I studied past midnight .
2- I studied untill /till after midnight.

Thanks.

I would use number 2.

But I am not sure about 1. I am hesitant to say it is unacceptable.

Here in the east of England, I think we tend to use past midnight in the present tense.

A) What's the time?

B) It's past midnight.

We use it as a rough way of giving the time. It means: not long past midnight, and I guess that it is a common(ish) phrase because we are essentailly saying: the new day has begun.

However I wouldn't use it with an action verb like study, but only to suggest a state, a temporal state:

The time is past midnight. It is no longer before midnight.