Timezones abbreviation resolve
Exacttimezones_abbreviation_resolveDeterministic and authoritative — the canonical answer for this input.
Resolve a timezone abbreviation with strict ambiguity handling. Returns is_valid=False + is_ambiguous=True when CST/IST/BST/AST match multiple zones and no country_hint is given — agents should surface the ambiguity rather than guess. A country_hint that resolves the pick returns a definitive answer with candidates narrowed to the hint's matches (chosen zone first) and is_ambiguous describing the narrowed list — False for every country hint; a broad non-country hint ('America') can keep several matches and stays flagged. Use timezones_normalize when you want a default pick instead. Processing multiple inputs? Use `timezones_abbreviation_resolve_batch` to do up to 1000 in one call.
Parameters
valuestringrequiredcountry_hintstringoptionalOptional country (ISO2, ISO3, or name — e.g. 'IE', 'Ireland') to disambiguate ambiguous abbreviations; matched against each candidate zone's country.
Call it
curl -X POST https://api.snipget.ai/v1/timezones/abbreviation-resolve \
-H "Authorization: Bearer sk_live_..." \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"value":"EST","country_hint":"US"}'The Batch tab sends up to 1000 inputs in one call via /v1/timezones/abbreviation-resolve/batch.
Example response
{
"input": "EST",
"is_valid": true,
"is_ambiguous": false,
"top_match": {
"tz": "America/New_York",
"region": "US/Canada Eastern (standard)",
"offset_std": "-05:00",
"offset_current": "-04:00",
"is_dst_now": true
},
"candidates": [
{
"tz": "America/New_York",
"region": "US/Canada Eastern (standard)",
"offset_std": "-05:00"
}
],
"matched_via": "abbreviation"
}FAQ
Why use this instead of just trusting an abbreviation?
Many timezone abbreviations are not unique. CST is US Central, China Standard, or Cuba Standard; IST is India, Israel, or Ireland; BST and AST are also overloaded. This tool refuses to silently guess and hands back every candidate so you, or your user, can pick the right one.
How is this different from the normalize tool?
Normalize is forgiving: for an ambiguous abbreviation it quietly picks a default and flags it. This tool is strict: when the abbreviation maps to multiple zones and you give no country_hint, it returns is_valid false with the full candidate list, so nothing is decided behind your back.
How do I get a single answer for an ambiguous abbreviation?
Add a country_hint, for example country_hint set to China or US. A hint that resolves the pick returns a definitive answer: top_match with the live offset and the candidates list narrowed to the zones matching your hint, chosen zone first. is_ambiguous then describes the narrowed list — false for every country hint, since a country selects at most one zone per abbreviation; a broad non-country hint like 'America' can leave several matches and stays flagged. A hint that matches none of the candidates refuses with is_valid false and keeps the full list so you can pick yourself.
What does it NOT do?
It only resolves timezone abbreviations. It will not take a city name, a ZIP, or an area code, and it does not convert times between zones. It is exact, meaning deterministic and authoritative: the candidate list for a given abbreviation is fixed and reproducible.
Is the ambiguous result an error?
No. An ambiguous abbreviation with no hint comes back as a normal response with confidence 0 and a why_invalid note, plus the candidates. That is the tool working as designed, not a failure to handle. An abbreviation that is not in the catalog also returns confidence 0 with a reason rather than throwing.