Days, Months, and Time

Time is fundamental to daily life. Whether you are scheduling meetings, making appointments, or just telling the time, these words are essential. Arabic uses a 24-hour clock system in formal contexts, but 12-hour time is common in everyday conversation.

Days of the Week

Day	Arabic	Transliteration	Meaning
Sunday	الأحد	al-ahad	Sunday
Monday	الاثنين	al-ithnayn	Monday
Tuesday	الثلاثاء	ath-thulaathaa’	Tuesday
Wednesday	الأربعاء	al-arbi3aa’	Wednesday
Thursday	الخميس	al-khamīs	Thursday
Friday	الجمعة	al-jum3a	Friday
Saturday	السبت	as-sabt	Saturday

Note: Friday is the Muslim holy day, like Sunday in Christianity. Many Arab countries have Friday-Saturday weekends.

Months of the Year

Month	Arabic	Transliteration
January	يناير	yanāyir
February	فبراير	fibrāyir
March	مارس	māris
April	أبريل	abrīl
May	مايو	mayyū
June	يونيو	yūniyū
July	يوليو	yūliyū
August	أغسطس	aghusṭus
September	سبتمبر	sabtimbar
October	أكتوبر	uktūbar
November	نوفمبر	nūfimbir
December	ديسمبر	disambir

Note: Many Arab countries also use the Islamic (Hijri) calendar for religious events. The Islamic year is about 11 days shorter than the Gregorian year.

Telling Time

Arabic	Transliteration	Meaning
الساعة كم؟	as-saa3a kam?	what time is it?
الساعة…	as-saa3a…	it is … o’clock
دقيقة	daqiqa	minute
ساعة	saa3a	hour / o’clock
الصبح	aṣ-ṣubḥ	morning
العصر	al-3aṣr	afternoon
المساء	al-masaa’	evening
الليل	al-layl	night
نصف	niṣf	half
ربع	rub3	quarter
دقيقة واحدة	daqiqa wāḥida	one minute
دقيقتان	daqiqaatān	two minutes

Time Expressions

Arabic	Transliteration	Meaning
اليوم	al-yawm	today
أمس	ams	yesterday
غداً	ghadan	tomorrow
الآن	al-aana	now
بعدين	ba3dean	later
قريباً	qareeban	soon
كل يوم	kullu yawm	every day
أحياناً	aḥyaanan	sometimes
دائماً	dā’iman	always
أبداً	abadan	never
في الصباح	fī ṣ-ṣabāḥ	in the morning
في المساء	fī l-masā’	in the evening
في الليل	fī l-layl	at night

Making Appointments

Arabic	Transliteration	Meaning
متى نلتقي؟	matā naltaqee?	when shall we meet?
هل السبت مناسب؟	hal as-sabt munaasib?	is Saturday suitable?
الساعة عشرة صباحاً	as-saa3a 3ashara ṣabāḥan	ten in the morning
الساعة الثالثة عصراً	as-saa3a ath-thālitha 3aṣran	three in the afternoon
نعم، أنا متاح	na3am, ana mutaḥāwiz	yes, I am available
آسف، مشغول	aasif, mashghūl	sorry, I am busy

Dialog: Making an Appointment

Making an appointment

A
marhaban Aḥmad, kayfa ḥāluk?Hello Ahmed, how are you?
B
bi-khayr al-ḥamdu lillāh, wa anti?Fine praise God, and you?
A
bi-khayr shukran. matā naltaqee?Fine thanks. When shall we meet?
B
hal as-sabt munaasib?Is Saturday suitable?
A
as-sabtu mashghūl. al-ahadu ba3dean?Saturday I'm busy. Sunday after that?
B
na3am, al-ahadu fī ṣ-ṣabāḥ. as-saa3a 3ashara ṣabāḥan?Yes, Sunday morning. Ten in the morning?
A
mumtaaz, ilā l-liqā'Excellent, see you then

Cultural Notes

The Islamic week starts on Sunday and ends on Friday
Friday prayer (صلاة الجمعة) is the most important prayer of the week
Many businesses close on Friday in Arab countries
The Islamic calendar is lunar, so Islamic holidays move earlier each year in the Gregorian calendar

Practice

What is the Arabic word for 'Friday'?

hint: It's the Muslim holy day

How do you ask 'what time is it?' in Arabic?

hint: Think of 'the hour how much?'

How do you say 'tomorrow' in Arabic?

hint: It is a single word

What is 'أمس' in English?

hint: It is the opposite of 'tomorrow'

Match each pair — start with Arabic (left)

0 / 10

Arabic

English

← Select an Arabic word, then tap its meaning →

Ready to learn prepositions? Continue to Prepositions.