Days, months and seasons, dates with le premier and le 5 mai, years, and en or au to say when. The first day of the month is le premier; the other days take the plain number: le premier mai, le cinq mai
Summary
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| Point | Rule | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Days | seven days, masculine, with no capital: lundi to dimanche | Aujourd’hui, c’est lundi. | Today is Monday. | |
| lundi, le lundi | lundi: that one Monday; le lundi: every Monday | Je pars lundi. / Le lundi, je travaille. | I'm leaving on Monday. / On Mondays, I work. | |
| Months | twelve months, masculine, with no capital; en + month | Je pars en juillet. | I'm leaving in July. | |
| Seasons | au printemps / en été / en automne / en hiver | Il fait chaud en été. | It's hot in summer. | |
| The date | le, the number, the month: no preposition | Mon anniversaire, c’est le 5 mai. | My birthday is on 5 May. | |
| The first | le premier; then the number: le deux, le trois… | le premier mai / le deux mai | 1 May / 2 May | |
| In writing | the day, then the month, then the year: 14/07/2026 | Rendez-vous le 14/07. | Appointment on 14 July. | |
| Years | a year is read as a number; en + year | Je suis né en deux mille huit. | I was born in 2008. | |
| Plural | days take an s in the plural: tous les lundis | Tous les lundis, je nage. | Every Monday I swim. | |
| Trap | the first day of the month: le premier, never le un | le premier janvier | 1 January | |
| Trap | au only with printemps; the other seasons take en | au printemps / en hiver | in spring / in winter |
Days of the week
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| Day | Short form | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| lundi | lun. | Monday | |
| mardi | mar. | Tuesday | |
| mercredi | mer. | Wednesday | |
| jeudi | jeu. | Thursday | |
| vendredi | ven. | Friday | |
| samedi | sam. | Saturday | |
| dimanche | dim. | Sunday |
- Days of the week and months are written with no capital letter. Je pars lundi. / Je pars en juillet.I'm leaving on Monday. / I'm leaving in July.
- Ask the day with Quel jour sommes-nous ? and answer with nous sommes. Quel jour sommes-nous ? — Nous sommes jeudi.What day is it? — It's Thursday.
- lundi names one Monday; le lundi names every Monday. Je pars lundi. / Le lundi, je travaille.I'm leaving on Monday. / On Mondays, I work.
- In the plural, days take an s: les lundis, les samedis. Tous les lundis, je nage.Every Monday I swim.
- France: Saturday and Sunday make up the week-end. Ce week-end, je suis chez moi.This weekend, I'm at home.
- Canada: In Québec, people say la fin de semaine, a feminine noun. Cette fin de semaine, je suis chez moi.This weekend, I'm at home.
Months
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| Month | English | Level |
|---|---|---|
| janvier | January | |
| février | February | |
| mars | March | |
| avril | April | |
| mai | May | |
| juin | June | |
| juillet | July | |
| août | August | |
| septembre | September | |
| octobre | October | |
| novembre | November | |
| décembre | December |
- février, août and décembre carry an accent. En août, il fait chaud.In August, it is hot.
Seasons
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| Season | When? | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| le printemps | au printemps | spring | |
| l’été | en été | summer | |
| l’automne | en automne | autumn | |
| l’hiver | en hiver | winter |
- The four seasons are masculine. Le printemps est doux. / L’hiver est froid.Spring is mild. / Winter is cold.
- Say au with printemps only; the other three seasons take en. Il pleut au printemps. / Il neige en hiver.It rains in spring. / It snows in winter.
Dates
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| Written | Said | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01/01 | le premier janvier | 1 January | |
| 05/05 | le cinq mai | 5 May | |
| 14/07 | le quatorze juillet | 14 July | |
| 31/12 | le trente et un décembre | 31 December |
- A date is said with le, the number and the month, with no preposition. Mon anniversaire, c’est le cinq mai.My birthday is on 5 May.
- The first day of the month is le premier; the other days take the plain number. Aujourd’hui, c’est le premier mai. / Demain, c’est le deux mai.Today is 1 May. / Tomorrow is 2 May.
- Ask the date with Quelle est la date ? and answer with c’est or nous sommes. Quelle est la date aujourd’hui ? — Nous sommes le quatorze juillet.What's the date today? — It's 14 July.
- In writing, the day comes before the month, then the year. 14/07/2026 → le quatorze juillet deux mille vingt-six
- The day of the week comes before the date. On se voit lundi 5 mai.See you on Monday 5 May.
Years
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| Year | Said | Level |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | mille neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-neuf | |
| 2000 | deux mille | |
| 2008 | deux mille huit | |
| 2026 | deux mille vingt-six |
- A year is read as a number, with no word for “year” and no et. Elle est née en deux mille vingt-six.She was born in 2026.
- Years from the 1700s to the 1900s may also be said in hundreds: dix-neuf cent quatre-vingt-dix-neuf. La Révolution française commence en dix-sept cent quatre-vingt-neuf.The French Revolution begins in 1789.
Saying when
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| Phrase | Rule | Example | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| lundi / le lundi | one particular day, with no preposition; every week with le | Elle arrive mardi. | She arrives on Tuesday. | |
| du lundi au vendredi | du and au give the start and the end | Je travaille du lundi au vendredi. | I work from Monday to Friday. | |
| en juillet | a month: en or au mois de | Nous partons en août. / Il pleut au mois de mars. | We leave in August. / It rains in March. | |
| au printemps / en été | a season: au for spring, en for the other three | J’adore voyager en automne. | I love travelling in autumn. | |
| le 14 juillet | a day of the month: le, with no preposition | Le concert est le quatorze juillet. | The concert is on 14 July. | |
| en 2026 | a year: en | Ils se marient en deux mille vingt-sept. | They get married in 2027. |
- For à + the time, pendant, depuis and dans, see Prepositions of Time.
Typical errors
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| Wrong | Right | Rule | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Je pars Lundi. | Je pars lundi. | days and months are written in lower case, unlike in English: lundi, juillet | |
| le un mai | le premier mai | the first day of the month is le premier | |
| Je pars au juillet. | Je pars en juillet. | before a month, say en | |
| en printemps | au printemps | printemps is the only season that takes au | |
| au été | en été | été, automne and hiver take en | |
| aout | août | août is written with a circumflex | |
| en deux mille et vingt-six | en deux mille vingt-six | no et after mille, unlike English “two thousand and twenty-six” | |
| tous les lundi | tous les lundis | days take an s in the plural |