English: Days, Months & Dates

Level: A1. Days, months and dates come up every time you make a plan, book a ticket or fill in a form. The words are short and fixed — the only tricky parts are the capital letters, the ordinal numbers and the British–American order.

By the end of this page you can…

…name the days and months, say and write any date, and use ‘on’ and ‘in’ correctly when you talk about time.

The days of the week

There are seven days. In English they all start with a capital letter, and most people count the week from Monday.

Saturday and Sunday together are the weekend; Monday to Friday are weekdays.

The months of the year

There are twelve months, also with a capital letter.

Saying and writing the date

To say the day of the month you use an ordinal number (first, second, third…), not a plain number. So you write 5 but say the fifth.

• 1st – first, 2nd – second, 3rd – third, 4th – fourth, 5th – fifth
• 12th – twelfth, 20th – twentieth, 21st – twenty-first, 31st – thirty-first

There are two natural ways to say a full date, and both are correct:

• British: the fifth of May — written 5 May or 5th May.
• American: May fifth — written May 5 or May 5th.

For the year, say it in two halves up to 1999 (nineteen ninety-nine), and from 2000 either as two thousand (and) nine or, from 2010, as twenty ten, twenty twenty-six.

British and American order

When a date is written only in numbers, the order changes between the two main varieties of English:

• British (and most of the world): day / month / year → 05/06/2026 = 5 June 2026.
• American: month / day / year → 05/06/2026 = June 5, 2026.

The same six digits mean two different days. When it matters — a flight, a deadline, a contract — write the month as a word.

‘On’, ‘in’ and other time words

• on + a day or a date: on Monday, on 5 May, on my birthday.
• in + a month, a season or a year: in May, in summer, in 2026.
• at + the weekend (British) / on the weekend (American): at the weekend / on the weekend.
• To ask, say What day is it today? or What’s the date today?

Example sentences

Press play, then say each line out loud.

1. Today is Monday.
   Naming the day of the week.
2. The meeting is on Tuesday.
   Use 'on' before a day.
3. I don't work on Sundays.
   A plural day means 'every Sunday'.
4. We're closed at the weekend.
   British: 'at the weekend'.
5. My birthday is in March.
   Use 'in' before a month.
6. It's cold in January.
   Months take 'in'.
7. School starts in September.
   A month with 'in'.
8. What's the date today?
   Asking for today's date.
9. It's the first of April.
   British way: the + ordinal + of + month.
10. The exam is on the fifth of May.
    A date after 'on'.
11. Her flight is on May the tenth.
    A common spoken order.
12. The report is due on 5 June.
    Written British style, day before month.
13. We met on June fifth.
    American spoken order: month first.
14. The shop opened in 2019.
    Use 'in' before a year.
15. He was born in nineteen ninety-nine.
    Say a year in two halves.
16. The concert is on the twenty-first of July.
    A two-word ordinal date.
17. See you on Friday!
    A friendly plan with a day.
18. Christmas is on the twenty-fifth of December.
    A fixed yearly date.
19. My appointment is next Thursday.
    'Next' points to the coming week.
20. The year starts on the first of January.
    The first day of the year.

Quick recap before you practise.

Practice

Practice

Days, months and dates practice

Try each one, then press Check. No sign-up, nothing is sent anywhere — it all runs in your browser.

1 Match each time word to the right example.

• on Match for on — choose — 2026MayMondaythe weekend
• in Match for in — choose — 2026MayMondaythe weekend
• in Match for in — choose — 2026MayMondaythe weekend
• at Match for at — choose — 2026MayMondaythe weekend

Check

Show answer

• on → Monday
• in → May
• in → 2026
• at → the weekend

Days and dates take 'on', months and years take 'in', the weekend takes 'at' in British English.

2 Choose the preposition: My birthday is ____ July.

Check

Hint: months take this word

Show answer

in — Use 'in' before a month: in July.

3 Choose the preposition: The test is ____ Monday.

Check

Hint: days take this word

Show answer

on — Use 'on' before a day of the week: on Monday.

4 How do you say the written date 5 May in British English?

the five May the fifth of May May the five five of May

Check

Show answer

the fifth of May — British English uses the ordinal with 'of': the fifth of May.

5 In the UK, the date 05/06/2026 means…

5 June 2026 May 6, 2026 6 May 2026 June 5 only in the US

Check

Show answer

5 June 2026 — British order is day/month/year, so 05/06 is 5 June.

6 Put the words in order to say today's date the British way.

oftheMayfirst

CheckReset

Show answer

the first of May — British spoken dates follow: the + ordinal + of + month.

How to say it

A few of these words trip up English learners — copy the sounds, not the spelling.

• Wednesday drops the first d: say “WENZ-day”, not “wed-nes-day”.
• February is usually said “FEB-you-ree” — many speakers skip the first r.
• Tuesday starts with a “tyoo-” (British) or “too-” (American) sound.
• th in fifth, sixth and twelfth is the soft, tongue-between-teeth sound — not an f or a t.

Quiz

Check yourself

Days, months and dates quiz

8 questions · pick an answer and you'll see straight away if it's right.

0/8 0 answered

1. 1Which word is written correctly in a sentence?

   A see you on monday B see you on Monday C see you On monday D See you on MONDAY
   Show answer

   see you on Monday — Days are proper nouns and take a capital letter: Monday.

2. 2The two days of the weekend are…

   A Friday and Saturday B Saturday and Sunday C Sunday and Monday D Thursday and Friday
   Show answer

   Saturday and Sunday — The weekend is Saturday and Sunday; Monday to Friday are weekdays.

3. 3Choose the correct preposition: The course begins ___ September.

   A on B at C in D to
   Show answer

   in — Months take 'in': in September.

4. 4Choose the correct preposition: We arrive ___ Friday.

   A in B on C at D by
   Show answer

   on — Days take 'on': on Friday.

5. 5How do you write the ordinal for 21?

   A 21th B 21nd C 21st D 21rd
   Show answer

   21st — Twenty-first ends in -st, so it is 21st.

6. 6An American reads 03/04/2026 as…

   A 3 April 2026 B March 4, 2026 C 4 March 2026 D April 3, 2026
   Show answer

   March 4, 2026 — American order is month/day/year, so 03/04 is March 4.

7. 7Which is the natural British way to say 1 January?

   A the one January B January the one C the first of January D first January one
   Show answer

   the first of January — Use the ordinal with 'of': the first of January.

8. 8How do you usually say the year 1999?

   A one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine B nineteen ninety-nine C one nine nine nine D ninety-nine nineteen
   Show answer

   nineteen ninety-nine — Years before 2000 are said in two halves: nineteen ninety-nine.

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