quel jour sommes-nous ?
In French, "what is today?" is translated as quel jour sommes-nous ?
This phrase is a question used to ask for the current day of the week or the date. When expressing a full date in French, follow the format le [day] [month], such as le cinq mai for "the fifth of May". Note that the word date is feminine in French.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase quel jour sommes-nous ? literally translates to "what day are we?"
Which one should you use?
While quel jour sommes-nous ? is a common way to ask the question, it is more natural to use on est quel jour ? in casual spoken French. You can also use the slightly more impersonal form quel jour est-on ? to ask "what day is it?" or Quel est le jour aujourd'hui ? to ask "What is the day today?"
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase quel jour sommes-nous ? uses the verb être (to be) in the first-person plural nous (we) form.
Did you know?
- When providing the date as an answer, French uses the ordinal 'first' premier only for the 1st of the month. For every other day, such as the 2nd or 3rd, you must use standard cardinal numbers.
- While the literal translation is 'what day are we?', this phrasing reflects a cultural view of the speakers existing within the time of the day rather than the day being an external object.
- Because the word jour comes from the Late Latin 'diurnum', it is a linguistic cousin to the English word 'journal'. Both words trace back to the concept of a daily record or a period of twenty-four hours.
Examples in context
- On est quel jour aujourd'hui ?What day is it today?
- Excusez-moi, quel jour sommes-nous ?Excuse me, what day is it today?
- Je ne sais plus, quel jour sommes-nous ?I no longer know, what day is it today?
Example conversation
Lucas and Léa are planning a meeting.
- LucasLéa, quel jour sommes-nous ?Léa, what day is today?
- LéaNous sommes lundi, Lucas.Today is Monday, Lucas.
- LucasAh, c'est le jour du rendez-vous !Ah, it's the day of the appointment!
- LéaOui, on doit partir maintenant.Yes, we have to leave now.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries jour, quel, CC BY-SA 4.0.
