Week Meaning: Definition and Examples

Meaning 1：a seven-day period (week)

week 🔊

/wiːk/

A period of time that lasts for seven days, often used to plan schedules or activities.

Week calendar showing seven days from Monday to Sunday

a seven-day period 🔊

➕

/ə ˈsɛvən deɪ ˈpɪriəd/

A unit of time equal to seven consecutive days, used globally to organize schedules, work, and social activities.

📁 Category：Time & Dates 🔖 Level：beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Old English 'wice' meaning 'turn, change', referring to the recurring cycle of days.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine a circle of 7 dots representing days – 'week' sounds like 'weak' but it's a strong cycle.

📖 Example

I plan my study schedule for the week every Sunday evening. 🔊 I plan my study schedule for the week every Sunday evening.

🔗 Collocations

next week – the week following the current one

once a week – one time each week

during the week – on the days from Monday to Friday

🔄 Synonyms

seven-day period (n.) – a period of exactly seven days

workweek (n.) – the days of the week when people typically work

🌱 Derivatives

weekly (adj./adv.) – happening once a week or every week

weekday (n.) – any day of the week except Saturday and Sunday

weekend (n.) – Saturday and Sunday, a rest period

📖 Cultural Story

The seven-day week concept originated from Babylonian astrology, was adopted by the Romans, and spread through Christianity. Days were named after the Sun, Moon, and planets, later replaced by Germanic gods.