A rock formation shaped like an arch Mesa Arch Trail, Moab, United States
English Articles

Days of the week in English: What are they and how to use them?

By: Erin Kuester, Isabel McKay Thu Sep 12 2024
English
Grammar Tips

In English, the days of the week are:

  • Sunday

  • Monday

  • Tuesday

  • Wednesday

  • Thursday

  • Friday

  • Saturday

In this article, we’ll talk a bit more about the week in the English-language calendar, where the days of the week come from, and how to talk about the day of the week in conversation. Let’s take a look!

Table of Contents

    What is a week in English-speaking countries?

    In English-speaking countries, a week is 7 days: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.

    #
    Day
    Type of day

    1

    Sunday

    weekend

    (no work, no school)

    2

    Monday

    week day

    (work and school)

    3

    Tuesday

    4

    Wednesday

    5

    Thursday

    6

    Friday

    7

    Saturday

    weekend

    (no work, no school)

    What is the origin of the days of the week in English?

    The days of the week in English are named after Old English gods, Roman gods, or celestial bodies. Have a look!

    Day
    Meaning
    Explanation

    Sunday

    Day of the sun

    -

    Monday

    Day of the moon

    -

    Tuesday

    Day of Tiw

    Tiw was an Old English god of war and justice. You may recognize his Norse name: “Tyr.”

    Wednesday

    Day of Woden

    Woden was the Old English father god. You may recognize his Norse name: “Odin.”

    Thursday

    Day of Thunr

    Thunr was the Old English god of storms. You may recognize his Norse name: “Thor.”

    Friday

    Day of Friggu

    Friggu was the Old English goddess of love. You may recognize her Norse name: “Frigg.”

    Saturday

    Day of Saturn

    Named after the planet Saturn, which is named for the Roman god of time, "Saturnus."

    How to use the days of the week in English sentences?

    In English, the days of the week are proper nouns in English which means they are always capitalized.

    • My sister graduates on Saturday.

    • My sister graduates on saturday.

    However, unlike some proper names like Paris or Instagram, the days of the week can sometimes be plural and will take determiners like articles (the, a/an) or demonstrative adjectives (this, that, ...) more often than most proper names. This is because every month has many days that have the same name.

    • This Friday is my birthday.

      with a demonstrative adjective
    • I go to the gym on Fridays.

      plural

    You’ll see some cases where you’ll need to do this described below.

    In this section we’ll talk about how to use the days of the week in three cases:

    • To talk about a day of the week in the future

    • To talk about a day of the week in the past

    • To talk about an event that repeats on the same day

    TipTalking about weeks in English:
    • this week(the current week)

    • next week(the week after now)

    • last week(the week before now)

    As you’ll see, things can get a little complicated! If you’re ever uncertain, you can give the full date. Have a look at our post on how to say the date in English to learn more about this!

    How to talk about an event on a day of the week in the future?

    In English you can use the following phrases to talk about days of the week in the future:

    Remember that a week is measured Sunday to Sunday!
    • on / this + day of the week

      The event is during the current week.
    • next / this coming + day of the week

      The event is less than 7 days in the future, but is not during the current week.
      Tip

      In some British dialects you may hear day of the week + next.

    • not this + day of the week + but next + day of the week

      The event is during the next week (Sunday - Sunday), but is more than 7 days in the future!
    • (on) the + day of the week + after next

      There is more than one week (Sunday - Sunday) between now and the event, but the event is < 14 days away.

    Let’s look at an example!

    Sarah has a math test soon (at the bottom of the chart). The chart below shows how you can answer the question When is Sarah's math test? using a day of the week. The answer will change depending on when you ask the question:

    When are you asking?
    When is Sarah's math test?
    Rule
    Day of the week
    # days before test

    (any)

    15+

    [Say the full date]

    The event is > 14 days in the future

    Thursday

    14

    Her math test is (on) the Thursday after next.

    The event is < 14 days in the future, but it is not next week.

    Friday

    13

    Saturday

    12

    Sunday

    11

    Her math test is not this Thursday but next Thursday.

    The event is > 7 days in the future, but it is next week.

    Monday

    10

    Tuesday

    9

    Wednesday

    8

    Thursday

    7

    • Her math test is next Thursday.

    • Her math test is this coming Thursday.

    The event is < 7 days in the future, but is not during the current week.

    Friday

    6

    Saturday

    5

    Sunday

    4

    • Her math test is on Thursday.

    • Her math test is this Thursday.

    The event is during the current week.

    Monday

    3

    Tuesday

    2

    Wednesday

    1

    Thursday

    0

    Her math test is (later) today.

    THE EVENT!!

    Some other useful phrases for talking about future days:

    • tomorrow(the day after today)

    • the day after tomorrow(not tomorrow, but the next day)

    • a week from + day(thay day + 7 days)

    • two weeks from + day(that day + 14 days)

    Tip

    Native speakers will sometimes break these rules if the context makes the week that we are discussing clear. For example, if the test is 8 days away and today is Wednesday you might hear a conversation like this:

    Speaker A:

    Ugh. I have a test on Thursday.

    Speaker B:

    Tomorrow?

    Speaker A:

    No, not tomorrow. This coming Thursday.

    Usually we do not use this coming for a day that is more than 7 days in the future, but here the context makes it clear.

    If you’re ever confused, don’t hesitate to ask someone for the exact date!

    How to talk about an event on a day of the week in the past?

    In English, you can use the following phrases to talk about a day of the week in the past:

    Remember that a week is measured Sunday to Sunday!
    • on + day of the week

      The event was during the the current week.
    • this past + day of the week

      The event was less than 7 days in the past.
    • last + day of the week

      The event was (usually) less than 7 days in the past and was during the previous week.
    • not this + day of the week + but the one before

      The event was during the previous week, but was more than 7 days in the past.
    • (on) the + day of the week + before last

      The event was not during the previous week, but it was less than 14 days in the past.

    Let’s look at an example!

    Now Sarah’s math test is over! How should we talk about it after it happened?

    When are you asking?
    When was Sarah's math test?
    Day of the week
    # days after test

    Thursday

    0

    Her math test was (earlier) today.

    Friday

    1

    • Her math test was on Thursday.

    • Her math test was this past Thursday.

    Saturday

    2

    Sunday

    3

    Monday

    4

    • Her math test was last Thursday

    • Her math test was this past Thursday.

    Tuesday

    5

    Wednesday

    6

    Thursday

    7

    Friday

    8

    not this past Thursday but the one before.

    Saturday

    9

    Sunday

    10

    Monday

    11

    Her math test was (on) the Thursday before last.

    Tuesday

    12

    Wednesday

    13

    Thursday

    14

    (any)

    15+

    [Give the full date]

    Some other useful phrases for talking about past days:

    • yesterday(the day before today)

    • the day before yesterday(not yesterday, but the previous day)

    Tip

    Just like we saw above, native speakers are flexible about these rules when the context makes the week you are discussing clear. For example, if it is Friday, 8 days after the test, you might hear:

    Speaker A:

    Ooh! She’s passing back the tests from Thursday!

    Speaker B:

    Did we have a test yesterday?

    Speaker A:

    No, the tests from last Thursday.

    Usually last is not used if it has been more than 7 days, but here the context makes it clear.

    Again, if you’re ever confused, don’t hesitate to ask someone for the exact date!

    How to talk about an event that repeats on the same day of the week?

    To talk about an event that repeats on the same day of the week, use one of the options below:

    • on + plural day of the week

      • We go to trivia on Thursdays.

      • In the summer, the movie theater plays outdoor movies on Saturdays.

    • every + singular day of the week

      • We go to trivia every Thursday.

      • The movie theater plays outdoor movies every Saturday in the summer.

    You can also use other English quantifying adjectives like most, each, or many before a day of the week to change the meaning a bit:

    • We go to trivia most Thursdays.

      We go to trivia each Thursday.

    • We go to trivia many Thursdays.

    Just use the form of the noun (singular or plural) that would usually follow the quantity adjective.

    Summary

    In this post, we’ve given you a brief introduction to the days of the week and how to use them in English! We saw:

    • The days of the week are Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

    • Days of the week are always capitalized in English.

    • To talk about a future day, use one of these phrases:

      • on / this + day of the week

      • next / this coming + day of the week

      • not this + day of the week + but next + day of the week

      • (on) the + day of the week + after next

    • To talk about a past day, use one of these phrases:

      • on + day of the week

      • this past + day of the week

      • last + day of the week

      • not this + day of the week + but the one before

      • (on) the + day of the week + before last

    • To talk about an action that repeats on the same day use:

      • on + plural day of the week

      • every + singular day of the week

      • quantity adjective + singular day of the week

    Now, if you feel ready try out our days of the week activities! Or keep on learning with our article on how to say the date in English!

    To embark on your next language adventure, join Mango on social!

    Ready to take the next step?

    The Mango Languages learning platform is designed to get you speaking like a local quickly and easily.

    Mango app open on multiple devices