German Language

Basic German – What are the weekdays, months and dates in German?

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weekdays in german study setup with calendar and notebook
German Language | Basic German – What are the weekdays, months and dates in German?

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

The weekdays in German are Montag, Dienstag, Mittwoch, Donnerstag, Freitag, Samstag/Sonnabend, Sonntag—and you usually use am with days and im with months when talking about dates.

Key Points (weekdays in german)

  • German weekdays are capitalized because they are nouns
  • Use am + weekday: am Montag
  • Use im + month: im Januar
  • For a specific date: am + ordinal + month: am 3. Januar
  • The two “Saturday” words are both correct: Samstag (common) and Sonnabend (more regional)

If you’re starting from zero and want structure (not random vocabulary), Book a free trial class.

What are the 7 weekdays in German (with pronunciation tips)?

Here are the weekdays in German in a clean, copy-paste-friendly list.

EnglishGermanPronunciation tip (simple)
MondayMontag“MOHN-tag”
TuesdayDienstag“DEENS-tag”
WednesdayMittwoch“MIT-vokh” (the ch is soft/rough)
ThursdayDonnerstag“DON-ers-tag”
FridayFreitag“FRY-tag”
SaturdaySamstag / Sonnabend“ZAHMS-tag” / “ZON-ah-bent”
SundaySonntag“ZON-tag”

Quick teacher tip (why Indians stumble here)

In our beginner batches, many Indian learners pronounce Mittwoch like “Mit-woch” with a hard “ch”. The trick is: imagine the ch like the sound in “Bach” (a soft/rough air sound). That one small fix makes your speaking sound instantly more natural.

How do you say the months in German?

Months are also nouns, so they are capitalized.

MonthGerman
JanuaryJanuar
FebruaryFebruar
MarchMärz
AprilApril
MayMai
JuneJuni
JulyJuli
AugustAugust
SeptemberSeptember
OctoberOktober
NovemberNovember
DecemberDezember

Fun fact (easy memory hook)

Juni and Juli are the most confusing for beginners because they look similar. I tell students: Juni ends with n like “next month”, and Juli ends with li like a “later holiday”. Silly, but it works.

How do you say dates in German (am vs im)?

This is where most beginners get stuck.

Rule 1: Use am with weekdays

  • Ich habe am Montag Deutschunterricht.
  • Wir treffen uns am Freitag.

Rule 2: Use im with months

  • Ich bin im Januar in Deutschland.
  • Die Prüfung ist im März.

Rule 3: For a specific date, use am + number

German often uses a dot after the number in writing.

  • am 3. Januar
  • am 15. August

Examples you can copy:

  • Die Prüfung ist am 12. Februar.
  • Ich komme am 1. Mai.
  • Wir fahren am 20. Dezember nach Hause.

How do you ask “What date is it?” in German?

Here are beginner-safe questions and answers.

Questions

  • Welcher Tag ist heute? (What day is it today?)
  • Welches Datum haben wir heute? (What’s today’s date?)

Answers

  • Heute ist Montag.
  • Heute ist der 3. Januar.

Mini practice worksheet (save this section)

Fill in the blanks:

  1. Ich habe am ________ einen Termin. (Monday)
  2. Mein Geburtstag ist im ________. (March)
  3. Die Prüfung ist am ________. (15th August)

Answer key

  1. am Montag
  2. im März
  3. am 15. August

Best free practice resource for A1 beginners

If you want listening + reading practice around days and dates, Deutsche Welle’s Nicos Weg (A1) is one of the best free structured resources: https://learngerman.dw.com/en/nicos-weg/c-36519789

And if you want a full “start from scratch” path on LingoThoughts, see:

How LingoThoughts makes this stick

We teach days/months/dates inside real situations: appointment booking, travel plans, exam scheduling, and daily routines. That means you don’t just memorize weekdays in German—you start using them automatically.

If you want the A1 structure + speaking practice, Book a free trial class.

FAQ

Are weekdays capitalized in German? Yes. They are nouns, so they start with a capital letter.

Do Germans say Samstag or Sonnabend? Both exist. Samstag is common; Sonnabend is more regional.

How do I say “on Monday” in German? am Montag.

How do I say “in January” in German? im Januar.

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