German Days of the Week (Wochentage) — Complete Beginner Guide

Learning the days of the week in German is one of the first vocabulary goals for beginners. You will use them constantly: when you make plans, talk about work or school schedules, book appointments, and describe routines. In German, the days are called die Wochentage (literally: “the week days”).

In this lesson you will learn the full list of days, how to pronounce them, how to use them in real sentences, and the most common expressions like am Montag (on Monday), montags (on Mondays), and nächsten Freitag (next Friday).

The 7 Days of the Week in German

All days of the week in German are usually masculine, so they use der:

Note: In some regions (especially in southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland), people often say der Sonnabend instead of der Samstag. Both mean “Saturday”.

How to Say “On Monday” (am + Day)

To say “on Monday / on Tuesday …” in German, the most common structure is:

• am + day (dative)

Because the days are masculine (der Montag), dative becomes dem, and am = an dem.

• am Montag – on Monday
• am Dienstag – on Tuesday
• am Mittwoch – on Wednesday
• am Donnerstag – on Thursday
• am Freitag – on Friday
• am Samstag / am Sonnabend – on Saturday
• am Sonntag – on Sunday

Examples:

• Ich habe am Montag einen Termin.
• Wir lernen Deutsch am Mittwoch.
• Kommt ihr am Freitag?

How to Say “On Mondays” (montags)

If you want to talk about something that happens regularly every week, German often uses the “-s” form:

• montags – on Mondays
• dienstags – on Tuesdays
• mittwochs – on Wednesdays
• donnerstags – on Thursdays
• freitags – on Fridays
• samstags – on Saturdays
• sonntags – on Sundays

Examples:

• Ich arbeite montags im Büro.
• Wir haben freitags Deutschunterricht.
• Sonntags schlafe ich länger.

“This Monday”, “Next Friday”, “Last Tuesday”

To speak naturally, you need the most common time words used with the days:

Tip: With these time phrases, German often drops the article: diesen Montag (not *am diesen Montag* in most normal sentences).

Useful Questions and Answers

Here are common beginner questions that use the days of the week:

• Welcher Tag ist heute? – What day is today?
• Heute ist Montag. – Today is Monday.
• Welcher Tag ist morgen? – What day is tomorrow?
• Morgen ist Dienstag. – Tomorrow is Tuesday.
• Wann hast du Zeit? – When do you have time?
• Am Donnerstag habe ich Zeit. – I’m free on Thursday.

Common Expressions with Days

• von Montag bis Freitag – from Monday to Friday
• am Wochenende – on the weekend
• unter der Woche – during the week
• jeden Montag – every Monday
• nächste Woche – next week
• diese Woche – this week

Examples:

• Ich arbeite von Montag bis Freitag.
• Am Wochenende besuche ich meine Familie.
• Unter der Woche habe ich wenig Zeit.

Capital Letters: Days Are Always Capitalized

Just like all German nouns, the days of the week are always capitalized: Montag, Dienstag, Mittwoch, etc.

• ✅ Ich komme am Freitag.
• ❌ Ich komme am freitag.

Common Mistakes (And How to Fix Them)

• ❌ am montag → ✅ am Montag (capitalize)
• ❌ in Montag → ✅ am Montag (use “am”)
• ❌ am Montags → ✅ montags (regular) OR am Montag (specific)
• ❌ SonntagS → ✅ sonntags (lowercase as adverb, but sentence start can be capitalized)

Rule: am Montag = one specific Monday. montags = every Monday (habit/routine).

Mini Practice

Try these quick sentences (say them out loud):

• Heute ist __________.
• Morgen ist __________.
• Ich arbeite am __________.
• Ich lerne Deutsch __________.
• Am Wochenende bin ich __________.

You can now practice these in a quiz or with flashcards. Repeating the days daily for one week is enough for most beginners.

Summary

• Days of the week are called die Wochentage.
• They are usually masculine: der Montag, der Dienstag, etc.
• Use am + day for “on Monday”: am Montag.
• Use -s for routines: montags = on Mondays.
• Days are always capitalized because they are nouns.