German · A1 · Everyday language
Days of the week in German
Learn to name the days, ask what day it is, and make simple weekly plans in German.
What you'll learn
- Use the names of the seven days of the week.
- Talk about today, tomorrow, and next week.
- Use am with days and the weekend.
- Recognize time expressions that do not need a preposition.
German phrases for days of the week
Heute ist Montag.
Today is Monday.
Day names are nouns, so they start with a capital letter.
Morgen ist Dienstag.
Tomorrow is Tuesday.
Morgen means 'tomorrow' here. It is capitalized because it starts the sentence.
Am Samstag ruhen wir uns aus.
On Saturday we rest.
Am means 'on' with a day. The verb ausruhen splits: ruhen wir uns aus.
Welcher Tag ist heute?
What day is it?
A natural way to ask which day it is; literally, 'Which day is today?'
Bis Freitag!
See you on Friday.
A friendly goodbye. Bis means 'until'; do not add am here.
Jeden Morgen.
Every morning.
Der Morgen means 'the morning'. This time expression needs no preposition.
Am Wochenende.
At the weekend.
Use am with Wochenende, just as with day names.
Nächste Woche.
Next week.
No preposition is needed in this expression.
Hear these phrases and practise them
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Try it free for 7 daysKey words
Montag
Monday
All German day names are masculine: der Montag.
Dienstag
Tuesday
Use am Dienstag for 'on Tuesday'.
Mittwoch
Wednesday
This day name does not end in -tag.
Donnerstag
Thursday
Use am Donnerstag for 'on Thursday'.
Freitag
Friday
Bis Freitag! means 'See you on Friday!'
Samstag
Saturday
You may also hear Sonnabend in some parts of Germany.
Sonntag
Sunday
Use am Sonntag for 'on Sunday'.
das Wochenende
the weekend
Am Wochenende means 'at the weekend'.
die Woche
the week
Nächste Woche means 'next week'.
morgen / der Morgen
tomorrow / the morning
Inside a sentence, lowercase morgen means 'tomorrow'; the noun Morgen is always capitalized.
Time expressions with am and bis
Am is short for an dem. Use it with day names and Wochenende to say when something happens. Use bis in a goodbye to name when you will meet again.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| On a day | am + day name | Am Mittwoch spielen wir. — On Wednesday we play. |
| At the weekend | am Wochenende | Am Wochenende ruhen wir uns aus. — At the weekend we rest. |
| Goodbye until a day | bis + day name | Bis Freitag! — See you on Friday! |
Time expressions without a preposition
Some common time expressions stand alone. Jeden Morgen uses the accusative form jeden to show repetition. Nächste Woche also uses the accusative, but its form looks unchanged.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Today | heute | Heute ist Montag. — Today is Monday. |
| Tomorrow | morgen | Morgen ist Dienstag. — Tomorrow is Tuesday. |
| Every morning | jeden Morgen | Wir spielen jeden Morgen. — We play every morning. |
| Next week | nächste Woche | Wir kommen nächste Woche. — We are coming next week. |
Starting a statement with a time expression
In a German statement, the conjugated verb comes second. A whole time expression counts as one unit. If it comes first, the subject follows the verb.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Subject first | subject + verb + time | Wir spielen am Montag. — We play on Monday. |
| Time first | time + verb + subject | Am Montag spielen wir. — On Monday we play. |
More examples
Heute ist Mittwoch.
Today is Wednesday.
Swap in any day name after Heute ist.
Am Donnerstag lesen wir.
On Thursday we read.
The verb lesen comes after the whole time expression Am Donnerstag.
Bis Sonntag!
See you on Sunday!
Use bis without am in this goodbye.
Jeden Morgen frühstücken wir.
Every morning we eat breakfast.
Jeden Morgen needs no preposition.
Nächste Woche spielen wir zusammen.
Next week we play together.
Zusammen means 'together'.