français · A1 · vocabulary · 4 minutes
Days of the week
Place routines and appointments across a French week.
Understand the choice
Use days in three patterns: lundi for this coming or specified Monday, le lundi for every Monday, and du lundi au vendredi for a range. Context and articles carry the calendar meaning.
Core rule: French day names are lowercase; a bare day can name one date, while le + day commonly expresses a weekly habit.
Notice it in context
Je travaille du lundi au vendredi et je me repose le dimanche.
I work from Monday to Friday and rest on Sunday.
Du ... au forms a complete range; le dimanche presents a Sunday routine.
Le cours est mardi.
The class is on Tuesday.
A single scheduled day can appear without an article.
Le samedi, nous cuisinons ensemble.
On Saturdays, we cook together.
Le + singular day expresses a repeated weekly habit.
What to remember
- Days remain singular after le when expressing a habit: le lundi, le mardi.
- Weekend is widely used as le week-end; fin de semaine is preferred in some regions, especially Quebec.
Common trap: Do not capitalize ordinary day names in French, and do not add sur before them to translate English “on.”