How to Say "Three Weeks" in Japanese

三週間

sanshuukan

The English phrase "three weeks" is translated into Japanese as 三週間 (sanshuukan).

三週間 is used to describe a period of time lasting twenty-one days.

What does it mean word for word?

The phrase is composed of 三 (three), 週 (week) and 間 (interval/period of time).

You can also express the concept of "three weeks later" or "in three weeks" by adding 後 (go) to the end of the phrase to form 三週間後.

sanshuukan

The character 間 used in 三週間 also means 'space' or 'room'. This reflects a linguistic worldview where time is perceived as a physical distance or a gap between two points.
In Japanese, the word for 'week' 週 is a relatively modern invention. Before the adoption of the Western calendar, Japan used the lunar calendar and did not have a concept of a seven-day week.
In Japanese, when you want to say 'three weeks' as a specific point in time rather than a duration, you often drop the 間 (interval) and use the counter 週 alone, such as in 三週目 to mean 'the third week'.

私は三週間前にホテルを予約しておいた。
I reserved my hotel room three weeks in advance.
This sentence shows how to use 三週間 to specify how far in advance an action was taken.
Tatoeba #156669 by arnab, translation #257865 by CK
ようやく、この三週間に受信したメールの返信を書く時間ができました。
Finally, I have time to reply to the mail that I have received these past three weeks.
This sentence uses 三週間 to refer to the duration of a recent period of time.
Tatoeba #192876 by bunbuku, translation #30042 by Luornu
三週間経った。
Three weeks went by.
This sentence uses 三週間 to indicate that a period of time has elapsed.
Tatoeba #1434386 by marcelostockle, translation #1434382 by CM
三週間の休暇を取ります。
I will take a three-week vacation.
三週間も旅行に行くんだよ！
I'm going on a three-week trip!
4 more sentences on Tatoeba

Yui and Hiroto are talking about Hiroto's upcoming trip.

結衣 Yui

旅行はどのくらいの期間なの？
ryokou wa dono kurai no kikan nano?
How long is your trip?
大翔 Hiroto

三週間ほど行く予定だよ。
sanshukan hodo iku yotei da yo.
I'm planning to go for about three weeks.
結衣 Yui

それは長いね、楽しんできて！
sore wa nagai ne, tanoshinde kite!
That's long, have a great time!
大翔 Hiroto

うん、ありがとう！
un, arigatou!
Yeah, thanks!

Sources

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