week
Americannoun
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weeks
plural
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a period of seven successive days.
That wallpapering I thought I could do in two days ended up taking me a whole week.
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the period of seven days from Sunday through Saturday, generally understood as the common representation of a week on a calendar.
The 1st of next month is a Tuesday, so the first full week will begin on the 6th.
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a period of seven successive days that begins with or includes an indicated day.
the week of June 3; Christmas week.
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(often initial capital letter) a period of seven successive days devoted to a particular celebration, honor, cause, etc..
National Book Week.
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the working days or working portion of the seven-day period; workweek.
Not all American workers put in the same number of hours on the job, but a 40-hour week is the norm.
adverb
noun
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a period of seven consecutive days, esp one beginning with Sunday
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a period of seven consecutive days beginning from or including a specified day
Easter week
a week from Wednesday
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the period of time within a week devoted to work
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a week devoted to the celebration of a cause
adverb
Usage
What does week mean? Week most generally refers to any period of seven consecutive days. The word week also commonly refers to the seven-day period that begins on Sunday and ends on Saturday (though in some places this may be different, with the week considered to begin on Monday, for example). There are 52 of these weeks in a calendar year. Sometimes, the word week is used to refer to a seven-day period that begins or includes a specific day, as in the week of September 5 or Thanksgiving week. It can also be used to refer to a seven-day period dedicated to a specific cause or cultural observation, as in National Grief Awareness Week. The word week is also often used to refer to the workweek (or schoolweek) to distinguish this span of (often five) days from the weekend. The standard workweek is from Monday through Friday, with Saturday and Sunday being considered the weekend, though working schedules vary widely. Many full-time jobs consist of a 40-hour week (five eight-hour days). The days within this five-day span are called weekdays, and the evenings of those days are called weeknights. The middle of the week is called midweek. The word weekly most commonly means done or happening once a week or every week, as in a weekly meeting. Example: They said it would take a week to get a reply, and it’s been six days already, so I’m hoping for a response tomorrow.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of week
First recorded before 900; Middle English weke, Old English wice; cognate with Dutch week, Old Norse vika “week,” Gothic wikō “turn”; akin to Latin vicis (genitive) “turn” ( see vice 3)
Explanation
Seven days make up one week, and there are 52 weeks in a year. If you won't see your friend again until next Thursday, you can say, "See you next week!" Before the adoption of the Roman calendar, a week was more of a vague kind of change or succession, like the turning of a full moon to a half moon, for example. The modern week is strictly calendar-related, and seven days long, unless you're talking about a "work week" or a "school week," as in "I have Friday off, so my school week ends tomorrow!"
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
USC was especially cautious with Stewart’s injury during the week last season, which led Stewart to sit out a significant number of practices.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
About 140 of the investment bank’s clients attended a conference call it organized about the Brighthouse transaction last week, she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
The tournament takes place the week before the singles draw gets under way and allows direct entry into the main draw for top-ranked singles players and wildcards.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
This week, we’ve rolled out Challenge No. 3, and it’s going to require you to get a little bit vulnerable with your friends.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
After a week of being kept at home in our stuffy rooms above the shop, I supposed I was lucky to even be let outside.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Less than three weeks later, the district attorney’s office announced that it would move forward with the prosecution.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
Those who spent the following weeks trying to understand the crisis focused in part on Aschenbrenner’s role, concluding that he had been in contact with at least one director who voted to fire Altman.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Anytime you sign up, you’ll trigger the series from the beginning: One challenge will land in your inbox each week for the following six weeks.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
This was useful court time for him, but did not really tell us anything about his chances of remaining in New York for the singles final in just under three weeks time.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
Surely Theo won’t notice, as cluttered as his desk was, and if he did notice it might take weeks.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
