The days of the week are some of the first German words you’ll use every day. You need them to make plans, read opening hours on a shop door, book a doctor’s appointment or answer the simple question “When are you free?” The good news is that most of them look a lot like their English cousins.
Below you’ll find all seven days with pronunciation tips, where the names come from, and the small grammar points that trip learners up, like when to say am Montag and when to say montags.
The days of the week in German
German weeks start on Monday, and that’s how calendars are printed in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Here are the days in order, with a rough English guide to pronunciation.
| German | English | Sounds roughly like | Short form |
|---|---|---|---|
| der Montag | Monday | MOHN-tahk | Mo |
| der Dienstag | Tuesday | DEENS-tahk | Di |
| der Mittwoch | Wednesday | MIT-vokh | Mi |
| der Donnerstag | Thursday | DON-ers-tahk | Do |
| der Freitag | Friday | FRY-tahk | Fr |
| der Samstag | Saturday | ZAMS-tahk | Sa |
| der Sonntag | Sunday | ZON-tahk | So |
A few sounds to watch:
- The final -g in -tag is pronounced like a k in standard German: Montak.
- The w in Mittwoch sounds like an English v, and the ch is the throaty sound from Bach.
- The s at the start of Samstag and Sonntag is voiced, like an English z.
The short forms in the last column are what you’ll see on shop doors, timetables and calendar apps, for example Mo-Fr 9-18 Uhr (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.).
All days are masculine
This one is easy. Every day of the week is masculine, so it’s always der. The same goes for der Tag (the day) itself. One exception in this area: die Woche (the week) is feminine, and das Wochenende (the weekend) is neuter.
- Der Montag ist immer stressig. (Monday is always stressful.)
- Ich freue mich auf den Freitag. (I’m looking forward to Friday.)
Where the names come from
The names make more sense once you know their roots, and the English names share most of them.
- Montag is the moon’s day, like Monday.
- Dienstag goes back to the old Germanic assembly called the Thing and the god connected with it.
- Mittwoch simply means “midweek.” English kept Woden’s day (Wednesday) instead.
- Donnerstag is the day of Donar, the Germanic thunder god known in English as Thor. Der Donner still means thunder.
- Freitag is named after the goddess Frija, like Friday.
- Samstag comes from the word for the Sabbath. In parts of northern and eastern Germany you’ll also hear Sonnabend, literally “Sunday eve.”
- Sonntag is the sun’s day, like Sunday.
“On Monday”: am Montag
To say something happens on a particular day, use am, a contraction of an dem.
- Am Freitag gehen wir ins Kino. (On Friday we’re going to the movies.)
- Wir treffen uns am Donnerstag. (We’re meeting on Thursday.)
- Was machst du am Wochenende? (What are you doing on the weekend?)
Notice the word order in the first example. When the time phrase comes first, the verb still has to be in second position, so the subject moves after it: Am Freitag gehen wir, not Am Freitag wir gehen.
“On Mondays”: montags
For something that happens regularly, add an -s and write the word with a lowercase letter. It becomes an adverb.
- Meine Deutschstunde ist dienstags um 18 Uhr. (My German lesson is on Tuesdays at 6 p.m.)
- Der Laden hat sonntags geschlossen. (The store is closed on Sundays.)
- Samstags schlafe ich lange. (On Saturdays I sleep in.)
That second sentence describes real life in much of Germany. Most shops are closed on Sundays, so plan your grocery run for Samstag.
Combining days with times of day
German likes to glue words together, and days are no exception. You can combine a day with a part of the day to make one noun.
| Part of the day | English | Combined example |
|---|---|---|
| der Morgen | morning | am Montagmorgen (on Monday morning) |
| der Vormittag | late morning | am Dienstagvormittag (on Tuesday late morning) |
| der Mittag | midday | am Mittwochmittag (on Wednesday at midday) |
| der Nachmittag | afternoon | am Donnerstagnachmittag (on Thursday afternoon) |
| der Abend | evening | am Freitagabend (on Friday evening) |
| die Nacht | night | in der Nacht von Samstag auf Sonntag (on Saturday night) |
Night is the odd one out. You say in der Nacht, never an der Nacht. There’s no deeper rule behind it, so just learn it as a fixed phrase.
The regular version works too: montagabends means “on Monday evenings.”
Yesterday, today, tomorrow and next week
These words help you talk about days relative to today.
- vorgestern: the day before yesterday
- gestern: yesterday
- heute: today
- morgen: tomorrow
- übermorgen: the day after tomorrow
Combine them with times of day: heute Morgen (this morning), gestern Abend (last night, yesterday evening), morgen früh (tomorrow morning). Watch out for morgen Morgen. It isn’t used; Germans say morgen früh instead.
To say “next Monday” or “last Friday,” you don’t need a preposition. The phrase goes in the accusative case, which is why the adjective ends in -en.
- Nächsten Montag habe ich einen Termin. (I have an appointment next Monday.)
- Letzten Freitag war ich krank. (I was sick last Friday.)
- Ich gehe jeden Mittwoch schwimmen. (I go swimming every Wednesday.)
Useful phrases with days of the week
- Welcher Tag ist heute? (What day is it today?) Heute ist Mittwoch. (Today is Wednesday.)
- Von Montag bis Freitag arbeite ich. (I work Monday to Friday.)
- Hast du am Samstag Zeit? (Are you free on Saturday?)
- Bis Montag! (See you Monday!)
- Schönes Wochenende! (Have a nice weekend!)
- Unter der Woche habe ich wenig Zeit. (During the week I don’t have much time.)
To ask about the date rather than the day, use Der Wievielte ist heute? (What’s the date today?). For that you’ll need ordinal numbers and the months, which we cover in separate guides.
Common mistakes
- Saying in Montag or an Montag. The correct form is am Montag.
- Capitalizing the adverb. Montags only takes a capital letter at the start of a sentence; elsewhere it’s montags.
- Using die or das. All seven days are der.
- Forgetting the verb-second rule after a time phrase: Am Sonntag besuche ich meine Oma, not Am Sonntag ich besuche meine Oma.
Key takeaways
- The German week starts on Monday, and every day is masculine.
- Use am for a single day (am Freitag) and a lowercase -s form for habits (freitags).
- Days combine with parts of the day: am Sonntagnachmittag.
- “Next” and “last” need no preposition: nächsten Dienstag, letzten Samstag.
FAQ
Is it Samstag or Sonnabend?
Both mean Saturday. Samstag is the standard word everywhere. Sonnabend is used mostly in northern and eastern Germany. If you only learn one, learn Samstag.
Why is Mittwoch different from Wednesday?
English kept the name of the god Woden, while German replaced it with a neutral word meaning “midweek.”
Are days of the week capitalized in German?
Yes, as nouns: der Montag, am Dienstag. The adverb forms that end in -s, like montags, are written in lowercase unless they start a sentence.
