week-ends
The English phrase "weekends" can be translated into French as week-ends.
The adverbial phrase les week-ends is used to express that something happens habitually during weekends.
Meaning: On weekends (adv)
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Quebec, the standard term used instead of the anglicism week-end is la fin de semaine.
How does it change in a sentence?
The singular form is le week-end, while the plural is les week-ends. When expressing that something happens habitually on weekends, the plural form les week-ends is used with the definite article.
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often forget the hyphen in the French spelling. Ensure you write it as week-end.
Did you know?
- In some formal contexts or older literature, you may find le samedi et le dimanche used instead of le week-end. This is because week-end was long considered too casual or 'too English' for high-style writing.
- The phrase le week-end can be used as a temporal marker in French to mean 'during the weekend', whereas English speakers often feel the need to add the preposition 'on' or 'during'.
- Even though week-end is an anglicism, the Académie Française and many French speakers accept it as a common part of the lexicon.
Examples in context
- Je ne travaille jamais les week-ends.I never work during weekends.This sentence shows how to express that one never works during week-ends.Tatoeba #907174 by sacredceltic, translation #2306432 by sysko
- J'adore les week-ends de trois jours.I love three-day weekends.This sentence describes a liking for three-day week-ends.Tatoeba #1793464 by sacredceltic, translation #1789144 by Spamster
- Nous ne nous voyons que lors des week-ends.We only see each other on weekends.This sentence illustrates using week-ends to describe when people see each other.Tatoeba #4995236 by sacredceltic, translation #2768934 by Hybrid
- Au sein de notre entreprise, les jours de repos sont le samedi et le dimanche.Within our company, the rest days are Saturday and Sunday.
- Qu'est-ce que tu vas faire ce weekend ?What are you going to do this weekend?
- 13 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucas and Manon are discussing their free time.
- LucasQu'est-ce que tu fais les week-ends ?What do you do on weekends?
- ManonJe fais du sport les week-ends.I play sports on weekends.
- LucasC'est génial, Manon !That's great, Manon!
- ManonEt toi, Lucas ?And you, Lucas?
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
