Structure of days of the week

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星期 (xīngqī) means "week" in Chinese. This is also used to indicate which weekday you are talking about.

Structure

Days of the week in Chinese are formed by the word "week" followed by a number:

English Chinese
Monday 星期一
Xīngqīyī
Tuesday 星期二
Xīngqī'èr
Wednesday 星期三
Xīngqīsān
Thursday 星期四
Xīngqīsì
Friday 星期五
Xīngqīwǔ
Saturday 星期六
Xīngqīliù
Sunday 星期天
Xīngqītiān

Notice that Sunday is the only exception. Rather than a number, 天 (tiān) is used. More formally, Sunday is also referred to as 星期日 (xīngqīrì).

One other implication of this system that you may not have noticed: "day one" is Monday. In Chinese culture, the first day of the week is Monday, and not Sunday.

Examples

  • 今天 是 星期一 吗?Jīntiān shì xīngqīyī ma?Is today Monday?
  • 明天 星期五,太 高兴 了。Míngtiān xīngqīwǔ, tài gāoxìngle.Tomorrow is Friday, I'm so happy.
  • 星期一 我们 要 上班。Xīngqīyī wǒmen yào shàngbān.We will go to work on Monday.
  • 星期二 我 很 忙。Xīngqī'èr wǒ hěn máng.I am busy on Tuesday.
  • 星期三 要 做 什么?xīngqīsān yào zuò shénme?What are you doing on Wednesday?
  • 我们 星期六星期天 不 在 上海。Wǒmen xīngqīliùxīngqītiān bùzài Shànghǎi.Saturday and Sunday we will not be in Shanghai.
  • 上 个 星期三 我 跟 他 见面 了。Shàng gè xīngqīsān wǒ gēn tā jiànmiànle.I met him last Wednesday.
  • 这 个 星期三 我 有空。Zhè gè xīngqīsān wǒ yǒu kòng.This Wednesday I (have time) am free.
  • 下 个 星期四 是 我 的 生日。Xià gè xīngqīsì shì wǒ de shēngrì.My birthday is on next Thursday.
  • 我们 每 个 星期五 都 去 酒吧。Wǒmen měi gè xīngqīwǔ dōu qù jiǔbā.We go to a bar every Friday.

Other words for "week"

Hopefully this doesn't freak you out, but there are actually two other ways to say "week" in Chinese. You should still learn 星期 (xīngqī) first, and that's really all you need as a beginner.

The other words for "week" are 礼拜 (lǐbài) and 周 (zhōu). Skip them for now unless you really need them.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books