Days of the week in English (and the best tips to learn them)

Learning the days of the week is essential for any language learner. From booking an appointment to making a hotel reservation, knowing how to say the days of the week is a vital part of everyday speaking.

Thankfully the days of the week in English are quite simple to learn (we promise!) and we’ve got some great tips on how to help you remember them.

  • What are the days of the week in English?
  • Days of the week and their pronunciation
  • How to learn the days of the week
  • Vocabulary around the days of the week
  • Questions & answers about the days of the week in English

What are the days of the week in English?

There are seven days in a calendar week – Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

While each day has a distinctive spelling and sound, they all have one thing in common. They all end with the word DAY. So all you really need to remember is the first part of the word. Hurray!

Easy, right? In fact, it is. It is a lot simpler and easier to remember than say, the Spanish days of the week.

Days of the week and their pronunciation

The days in EnglishPronunciation
MondayMUN – day
TuesdayTUEZ – day
WednesdayWENZ – day
ThursdayTHURZ – day
FridayFRY – day
SaturdaySAH-DER-day
SundaySUN – day

As with everything when learning a new language, repetition and proper pronunciation are key to helping the new words stick in your memory.

How to learn the days of the week

Learning languages can be fun! Watch this silly video that will promise ingrain the days of the week in your mind with a catchy tune. Or if that’s a bit too young, then check out Alison as she sings a somewhat catchy, if annoyingly so, song.

If you have memorized the days of the week in English but you’re struggling with the spelling, then go wild with this fun and silly game of Hangman.

This randomized game provides a clue about the word you need to spell. However for each letter you get wrong, the monkey watching you play is getting closer to getting squashed. You may find yourself intentionally getting the spelling wrong just to see him get squashed.

Vocabulary around the days of the week

Firstly, the thing to note is that “the days of the week” and “weekdays” in English are not the same thing.

The phrase “days of the week” refers to all seven days. From Monday right through to Sunday.

The weekdays are the five working days, which are Monday to Friday and so the weekend for most countries is Saturday and Sunday. However, in some countries like Israel, due to their religious holidays, the weekday actually starts on Sunday and finishes on Thursday.

Now that you’ve learnt the days of the week, you will need the relevant vocabulary to be able to put them into a sentence. Firstly here are some words and phrases that you can use with the days of the week.

  • Today – current day
  • Tomorrow – the day after today
  • Yesterday – the day before today
  • Morning – usually from 4 am until 12pm
  • Afternoon – usually from 12 pm until 5pm
  • Evening – approximately 5 pm until 9pm
  • Night – approximately 9pm until the early hours of the following morning
  • Bank holiday – A day where banks and businesses close.
  • Day off – A day where you don’t work. Can be a weekday or a weekend.
  • The day before yesterday.
  • There are seven days a week.
  • Today is Saturday. 

Questions & answers about the days of the week in English

  • What day is it today? — Today is Friday.
  • Are you free on Saturday evening? —— Yes, I am.
  • What happened yesterday? —— Nothing interesting.
  • What is happening today? —— I am working until 5pm and then I’m free.
  • Are you/ Is it open on Monday/Friday/the weekend? —— We are open Monday to Friday, but closed on the weekends.
  • When is your birthday? —— My birthday is this Tuesday.
  • What day is your party? —— My party is this Friday.

There you have it! Now all you need to do is keep practising and asking questions!

FAQs

What are the 7 days of the week in English?

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

What god is Tuesday named after?

Tueday is named after the Nordic god ‘Tyr’ or ‘Tír’. He is the god of justice and war but also described as wise.