今週はどうでしたか？
konshuu wa dou deshita ka?
The English phrase "how was your week?" is translated into Japanese as 今週はどうでしたか？ (konshuu wa dou deshita ka?)
This phrase is used to ask someone about their experiences and feelings during the past seven days.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase begins with 今週 (konshuu), which literally means "this week".
Which one should you use?
For a casual version used with friends or peers, you can use 今週どうだった？ For a more formal way to ask "How did you spend your week?", you can use いかがお過ごしでしたか」。
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
今週どうだった？ is the informal version suitable for friends or peers, while いかがお過ごしでしたか。 is used in formal situations.
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase 今週はどうでしたか？, the particle は marks 今週 (this week) as the topic of the sentence.
How do you pronounce it?
konshuu wa dou deshita ka?
Did you know?
- If you ask this phrase to a superior, they might respond with おかげさまで (okagesama de), which literally means 'thanks to you' or 'thanks to the gods', regardless of whether you helped them.
- Unlike English, which relies on the word 'your' to direct the question, Japanese frequently omits the subject entirely. Using a direct pronoun like 'you' when asking about someone's week can actually make the conversation feel cold or confrontational.
- The word 今週 (konshuu) is composed of two kanji meaning 'now' and 'week', but the character for 'week' 週 is derived from the Chinese word for 'cycle' or 'circuit'.
Examples in context
- 今週はどうでしたか？とても忙しかったです。How was your week? It was very busy.
- 今週はどうでしたか？Konshū wa dō deshita ka?How was your week?
- 仕事の方、今週はどうでしたか？Shigoto no hō, konshū wa dō deshita ka?How was your week with work?
Example conversation
Yui and Ren meet for coffee on Friday afternoon.
- 結衣 Yui蓮さん、こんにちは。今週はどうでしたか？Ren-san, konnichiwa. konshuu wa dou deshita ka?Hello Ren. How was your week?
- 蓮 Renとても忙しかったですが、楽しかったです。totemo isogashikatta desu ga, tanoshikatta desu.It was very busy, but it was fun.
- 結衣 Yuiそれは良かったですね。sore wa yokatta desu ne.That's good to hear.
- 蓮 Ren結衣さんはどうでしたか？Yui-san wa dou deshita ka?How about you, Yui?
