Days of the Week in Spanish: Complete Guide With Pronunciation and Origins

The Short Answer

The seven days of the week in Spanish are lunes, martes, miércoles, jueves, viernes, sábado, and domingo. They are never capitalized (unless starting a sentence), and the week starts on Monday in all Spanish-speaking countries.

Spanish is spoken by approximately 559 million people across 21 countries, according to Ethnologue's 2024 data. Whether you are planning a trip to Madrid, scheduling a call with a colleague in Mexico City, or following along with a Spanish course, knowing the days of the week is one of the most fundamental building blocks of the language.

"The names of the weekdays in Romance languages are among the most perfectly preserved traces of Roman planetary worship in everyday speech." (Joan Corominas, Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua castellana; María Moliner, Diccionario de uso del español)

This guide covers every day of the week with pronunciation, etymology, grammar rules, and cultural context so you can use them confidently in conversation.

All 7 Days at a Glance

Planetary Origins: Why Each Day Has Its Name

The Spanish days of the week from Monday through Friday descend directly from the Roman practice of naming days after celestial bodies and their associated gods. This system, established during the Roman Empire, has survived for over two thousand years in Spanish and other Romance languages.

Lunes

Lunes comes from the Latin dies Lunae (day of the Moon). The connection to Luna is transparent; Spanish also uses luna as the everyday word for "moon," and lunar for anything moon-related. In English, "Monday" follows the same pattern through Germanic mythology: "Moon's day."

The Moon was associated with change, cycles, and new beginnings, which makes it fitting that most Spanish-speaking cultures start their week on this day.

Martes

Martes derives from dies Martis (day of Mars), the Roman god of war. The planet Mars and the Spanish word for March (marzo) share this same root. In English, "Tuesday" comes from Tiw (Tyr), the Norse god of war, a parallel substitution.

Miércoles

Miércoles comes from dies Mercurii (day of Mercury), the swift messenger god of commerce and communication. Note the accent mark on the first "e"; miércoles is a four-syllable word with stress on the second syllable: mee-EHR-koh-lehs.

This is often the hardest day for learners to pronounce and spell. The accent mark is mandatory; without it, the stress would shift and the word would be incorrect.

Jueves

Jueves descends from dies Iovis (day of Jupiter), the king of the Roman gods. Jupiter ruled the sky, thunder, and lightning. In English, "Thursday" comes from Thor, the Norse thunder god, another neat parallel.

The Spanish "J" is pronounced like a strong English "H," so jueves sounds like "HWEH-behs."

Viernes

Viernes comes from dies Veneris (day of Venus), the goddess of love and beauty. English "Friday" derives from Frigg (or Freya), the Norse goddess of love, once again a direct mythological swap.

In many Spanish-speaking countries, viernes carries the same cultural weight as Friday does in English: it marks the start of the weekend and social plans. The phrase ¡Por fin es viernes! (Finally it's Friday!) is Spain's equivalent of "TGIF."

Sábado

Sábado breaks the planetary pattern. It comes from the Hebrew Shabbat (שַׁבָּת), meaning "rest" or "cessation," via Latin Sabbatum. This reflects the Judeo-Christian influence on the Roman calendar. English "Saturday" retained the Roman planetary name (Saturn's day), but Spanish preserved the religious one.

Domingo

Domingo also breaks the planetary pattern, coming from Latin dies Dominicus (day of the Lord). This Christian renaming replaced the original Roman dies Solis (day of the Sun), which English preserved as "Sunday." The name Domingo is also a common Spanish first name, traditionally given to boys born on Sundays.

Grammar: How to Use Days in Sentences

Spanish handles days of the week differently from English in several important ways. Mastering these rules will make your Spanish sound much more natural.

No Capitalization

According to the Real Academia Española (RAE), days of the week are common nouns in Spanish. They are never capitalized unless they begin a sentence.

• Tengo clase el martes. (I have class on Tuesday.)
• Martes es mi día favorito. (Tuesday is my favorite day. Capitalized only because it starts the sentence.)

"On Monday" = El lunes (Not a Preposition)

English uses "on" before days. Spanish uses the definite article el (singular) or los (plural) instead, with no preposition needed.

Examples:

• El viernes vamos al cine. (On Friday we're going to the movies.)
• Los miércoles tengo yoga. (On Wednesdays I have yoga.)

Singular vs. Plural Forms

Monday through Friday (lunes, martes, miércoles, jueves, viernes) have identical singular and plural forms. Only the article changes: el lunes (this Monday) vs. los lunes (Mondays).

Saturday and Sunday do change in the plural: sábado becomes sábados, and domingo becomes domingos.

Gender

All seven days are masculine. You will always use el and los (never la or las) with days of the week.

The Week Structure: Monday First

In Spain and across Latin America, Monday is the first day of the week. This is reflected in:

• Calendars and planners: All printed and digital calendars in Spanish-speaking countries start with lunes on the left.
• Business schedules: The workweek runs de lunes a viernes (Monday to Friday), and "the weekend" (el fin de semana) is Saturday and Sunday.
• ISO 8601 compliance: The international standard for date representation designates Monday as day 1, which Spanish-speaking countries follow.

This contrasts with the United States, where calendars traditionally start on Sunday. If you are switching between English and Spanish calendars, double-check day alignment to avoid scheduling errors.

Useful Phrases With Days of the Week

Here are essential everyday phrases that use the days of the week.

Months of the Year: A Quick Companion Reference

Since days and months frequently appear together in conversation, here is a quick reference for the 12 months in Spanish. Like the days, months are never capitalized in Spanish.

To say a specific date, Spanish uses the format: el + number + de + month. For example, el 15 de marzo (March 15th). The first of the month uses the ordinal: el primero de enero (January 1st).

Cultural Notes: How Days Shape Daily Life

The Spanish Schedule

Spain operates on a famously different daily schedule compared to most Western countries. Lunch (la comida) happens between 2:00 and 3:30 PM, dinner (la cena) starts at 9:00 or 10:00 PM, and the workday often stretches later. This affects how days "feel"; a Spanish viernes evening might not really begin until 10 PM.

Latin American Variations

In Mexico, the phrase entre semana (during the week) is universally understood to mean Monday through Friday. In Argentina, finde (short for fin de semana) is the casual way to say "weekend." These regional abbreviations show up constantly in everyday speech.

Practice With Real Spanish Content

Memorizing a list is a solid start, but hearing native speakers use these words naturally is what makes them stick. Spanish-language films and series are packed with scheduling conversations, date references, and day-of-the-week vocabulary.

Wordy lets you watch Spanish movies and shows with interactive subtitles. You can tap on any word, including day and month names, to see its meaning, pronunciation, and grammatical details in real time. Instead of drilling flashcards in isolation, you absorb vocabulary from authentic conversations.

For more Spanish learning resources, explore our blog for guides on everything from greetings to the best movies for learning Spanish. You can also visit our Spanish learning page to start practicing today.