Talking about time in Japanese requires knowing the right vocabulary for days, weeks, months, and relative time expressions. This guide covers them all.
At a Glance: Relative Time
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 今日 | きょう (kyou) | Today |
| 明日 | あした / あす | Tomorrow |
| 昨日 | きのう (kinou) | Yesterday |
| 今週 | こんしゅう | This week |
| 来週 | らいしゅう | Next week |
| 先週 | せんしゅう | Last week |
| 今月 | こんげつ | This month |
| 来月 | らいげつ | Next month |
Days of the Week
| Japanese | Reading | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 月曜日 | げつようび | Monday |
| 火曜日 | かようび | Tuesday |
| 水曜日 | すいようび | Wednesday |
| 木曜日 | もくようび | Thursday |
| 金曜日 | きんようび | Friday |
| 土曜日 | どようび | Saturday |
| 日曜日 | にちようび | Sunday |
Months and Dates
Months: simply 〇月 (〇-gatsu). January = 一月 (ichigatsu), February = 二月, … December = 十二月.
Days of month: 〇日 (〇-nichi). BUT: Day 1 = 一日 (tsuitachi), Day 2 = 二日 (futsuka), Day 3 = 三日 (mikka), Day 4 = よっか, Day 5 = いつか… Day 14 = じゅうよっか, Day 20 = はつか, Day 24 = にじゅうよっか. These irregular readings must be memorized!
YukaWhy are some dates irregular? Like はつか for the 20th?
ReiThese come from old Japanese counting words — they predate the Chinese-derived numbers Japan also uses. はつか (20th) from はた (twenty in old Japanese). You just have to memorize: 1日 (tsuitachi), 2日-10日 (futsuka through tooka), 14日 (juuyokka), 20日 (hatsuka), 24日 (nijuuyokka).
YukaWhat’s the most natural way to say “the day after tomorrow”?
Rei明後日 (あさって, asatte) = day after tomorrow. 一昨日 (おととい, ototoi) = day before yesterday. These are handy to know! 一昨昨日 (さきおととい) = three days ago, but that one is rarely used.
5 Practice Sentences
| # | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 来週の月曜日に会議があります。 | There’s a meeting next Monday. |
| 2 | 昨日は何をしましたか？ | What did you do yesterday? |
| 3 | 私の誕生日は5月20日です。 | My birthday is May 20th. |
| 4 | 明後日まで待ってもらえますか？ | Can you wait until the day after tomorrow? |
| 5 | 今月末に締め切りがあります。 | There’s a deadline at the end of this month. |
Quick Quiz
1. How do you say “last week”? → 先週 (senshuu)
2. What is the reading of 20日? → はつか (hatsuka)
3. How do you say “day after tomorrow”? → 明後日 (asatte)
Practice in the Comments!
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