Days of the Week in French: Lundi to Dimanche, Explained

The days of the week in French are lundi (luhn-DEE, Monday), mardi (mar-DEE, Tuesday), mercredi (mehr-kruh-DEE, Wednesday), jeudi (zhuh-DEE, Thursday), vendredi (vahn-druh-DEE, Friday), samedi (sam-DEE, Saturday), and dimanche (dee-MAHNSH, Sunday). Two things surprise English speakers immediately: the French week starts on Monday, not Sunday, and the days are never capitalized.

Seven words, a handful of rules, and one small grammatical trap (lundi vs le lundi) — that’s the whole topic. Let’s take it the way I would in a first lesson: sounds first, then the rules that make you sound natural.

The seven days, with pronunciation

French	Pronunciation	English	Named after
lundi	luhn-DEE	Monday	the Moon (lune)
mardi	mar-DEE	Tuesday	Mars
mercredi	mehr-kruh-DEE	Wednesday	Mercury
jeudi	zhuh-DEE	Thursday	Jupiter
vendredi	vahn-druh-DEE	Friday	Venus
samedi	sam-DEE	Saturday	the Sabbath
dimanche	dee-MAHNSH	Sunday	”the Lord’s day”

Notice the pattern: five of the seven end in -di, from the Latin dies (day), and each carries a planet’s name — the same planets as English, just in a different order. Mardi is literally “Mars day,” which is why Mardi Gras means “Fat Tuesday.” Only dimanche breaks the mold, putting the “day” part at the front.

Pronunciation notes worth thirty seconds:

• The -di ending is a crisp “dee,” never “die.”
• Jeudi starts with the soft French j — like the “s” in “measure,” not the “j” in “jump.”
• Vendredi and dimanche both contain nasal vowels (“vahn,” “mahnsh”) — air through the nose, tongue touching nothing. If nasals are still a mystery, my guide to French pronunciation untangles them properly.

The three rules that make you sound French

Rule 1: no capital letters. In French, days of the week are common nouns: Je travaille lundi (“I work Monday”). Capitalizing them is the single most common written giveaway of an English speaker. The same rule applies to months and languages, so you can fix three habits at once.

Rule 2: the week starts on Monday. French calendars, diaries, and phone apps all begin the week with lundi. The weekend — conveniently the same word, le week-end (luh wee-KEND), in everyday French — sits together at the end, which frankly makes more sense.

Rule 3: usually no preposition. English says “on Monday”; French says nothing at all: Je pars mardi — “I’m leaving (on) Tuesday.” Adding sur or à before a day is a classic beginner error. The day stands alone.

Lundi vs le lundi: the trap worth learning

Here’s the one genuinely important nuance, and it’s beautifully simple once you see it:

• Lundi (no article) = this specific Monday, one time. Je vais au cinéma lundi. (zhuh vay oh see-nay-MAH luhn-DEE) — “I’m going to the movies (this) Monday.”
• Le lundi (with le) = on Mondays, every week, habitually. Je vais au cinéma le lundi. — “I go to the movies on Mondays.”

That little le is the difference between one appointment and a standing routine. A few more workhorse patterns built on the same logic:

• tous les lundis (too lay luhn-DEE) — “every Monday”
• lundi prochain (luhn-dee proh-SHEH(N)) — “next Monday”
• lundi dernier (luhn-dee dehr-NYAY) — “last Monday”
• le lundi matin (luh luhn-dee mah-TEH(N)) — “on Monday mornings”

Teacher’s tip: shops and restaurants use the le form on their signs — Fermé le lundi means “closed on Mondays,” permanently, not just this week. Reading that sign correctly has saved many a traveler a wasted trip.

Asking and saying what day it is

The everyday question and its answer:

— Quel jour sommes-nous ? (kehl zhoor sum NOO) — “What day is it?” (standard) — On est quel jour ? (oh(n) nay kehl ZHOOR) — same thing, spoken and casual — On est mardi. (oh(n) nay mar-DEE) — “It’s Tuesday.”

You’ll also hear Nous sommes mardi (noo sum mar-DEE) — slightly more formal, same meaning. Note the French logic: literally “we are Tuesday,” which sounds odd in English and completely normal in French.

For dates, the day slots in before the number: lundi 14 juillet — “Monday, July 14th.” And since dates mean numbers, this is the natural moment to make sure yours are solid — my guide to French numbers covers 1 through the dreaded 99.

The vocabulary around the days

A cluster of words that always travel with the days of the week:

French	Pronunciation	English
un jour	uh(n) ZHOOR	a day
une semaine	ewn suh-MEHN	a week
aujourd’hui	oh-zhoor-DWEE	today
demain	duh-MEH(N)	tomorrow
hier	YEHR	yesterday
après-demain	ah-preh duh-MEH(N)	the day after tomorrow
avant-hier	ah-vah(n) TYEHR	the day before yesterday
le week-end	luh wee-KEND	the weekend
un jour férié	uh(n) zhoor fay-RYAY	a public holiday

Yes, French really does have single words for “the day after tomorrow” and “the day before yesterday,” and French people use them constantly. À après-demain ! — “see you the day after tomorrow!”

Put together, you can now build the sentences daily life actually requires: Aujourd’hui on est jeudi, demain c’est vendredi, et le week-end commence samedi. (“Today is Thursday, tomorrow is Friday, and the weekend starts Saturday.”)

A mini dialogue to make it stick

A colleague planning a coffee, entirely with this page’s vocabulary:

— On prend un café cette semaine ? (oh(n) prah(n) uh(n) kah-FAY seht suh-MEHN) — “Coffee this week?” — Oui ! Mardi ou mercredi ? — “Yes! Tuesday or Wednesday?” — Mercredi. Je travaille le mardi soir. — “Wednesday. I work on Tuesday evenings.” (note the habitual le) — Parfait, à mercredi ! (pahr-FEH, ah mehr-kruh-DEE) — “Perfect, see you Wednesday!”

That à + day pattern — à lundi !, à samedi ! — is how French speakers actually say “see you Monday,” and it pairs naturally with the greetings and goodbyes covered in French greetings.

FAQ

What are the days of the week in French in order?

Lundi, mardi, mercredi, jeudi, vendredi, samedi, dimanche — Monday through Sunday. The French week officially starts on Monday, so calendars list lundi first and group the weekend at the end.

Why aren’t French days of the week capitalized?

Because French treats them as ordinary common nouns, like “table” or “coffee” — capitals are reserved for proper nouns and sentence starts. The same rule covers months (janvier) and languages (le français). Writing Lundi mid-sentence instantly reads as an anglophone habit.

What’s the difference between “lundi” and “le lundi”?

Lundi alone means one specific Monday — usually the coming one: Je pars lundi (“I leave Monday”). Le lundi means every Monday, as a habit: Je nage le lundi (“I swim on Mondays”). The article turns a date into a routine.

How do you say “What day is it today?” in French?

Most naturally: On est quel jour aujourd’hui ? (oh(n) nay kehl zhoor oh-zhoor-DWEE). The textbook version is Quel jour sommes-nous ? Both get the same answer: On est + the day — On est vendredi, “it’s Friday.”

Do the French say “week-end”?

Yes — le week-end, borrowed straight from English and pronounced “luh wee-KEND,” is standard in France. (Québec prefers la fin de semaine.) Bon week-end ! is the universal Friday-afternoon goodbye, and one of the easiest French phrases you’ll ever learn.