Days, months, seasons and hours in lowercase in Spanish

Hello everyone.

Today we are going to talk about the days, the months, the stations and the hours.

Do you want to know all the details of these words?

Then join me on this exciting journey through time.

The days of the week 

We start with the days of the week; We talk about the origin of their names and other curiosities.

Names of the days and their origin

Do you know what are the 7 days a week in Spanish?

No? I present them to you:

MONDAY – The first day of the week; there are people who starts sad and another with energy and positivism. I hope you are from the second group 😉.

TUESDAY – The second day of the week. The mood here is usually better than on Monday.

WEDNESDAY – Many Spaniards are already starting to go out for a drink on Wednesdays, Perfect warm-up for the weekend.

THURSDAY – The day that is in the middle. There is a very funny expression for people who are very annoying: “You look like a Thursday, you're always in the way!” 😂

FRIDAY – Almost everyone's favorite day. We're all salivating just thinking about the weekend.

SATURDAY – Finally! What plans do you have for next Saturday? Go to the beach? Have dinner with your friends? Watch a movie? Tell me in comments!

SUNDAY – The calmest day, perfect for resting. In Valencia it is very common to eat a paella with the family. 😋

Why are the days of the week called that?

Your origin comes from the Ancient Rome. The Romans looked at the names of theplanets and of sun:

• MOON – MONDAY
• MARS – TUESDAY
• MERCURY – WEDNESDAY
• JUPITER – THURSDAY
• VENUS – FRIDAY
• SATURN – SATURDAY
• SUN – SUNDAY (the truth is that these two don't look much alike 😆)

What a nice reference! TRUE?

Now that you know where they come from their names, learn the days of the week In Spanish it is very easy.

Curiosities of the days

Let's go with some important grammatical data about the days of the week in Spanish.

They are written in lowercase

“Are the days of the week capitalized?”

NOOO. 😲

all are written in lower case.

Examples:

• The Thursday I'm going to have an organic coffee with my friend. ❌
• The Thursday I'm going to have an organic coffee with my friend. ✅
• today is Tuesday. ❌
• today is tuesday. ✅

They are all male

The days are all masculine. Therefore, whenever they are followed by articles, determiners or other words, they will be masculine:

The Monday, this Tuesday, that Friday, the next saturday, the next Wednesday, a Thursday…

They do not change in singular or plural

The days that are midweek are same in singular as in plural:

• On Monday/Mondays.
• On Tuesday/Tuesdays.
• On Wednesday/Wednesdays.
• On Thursday/Thursdays.
• On Friday/Fridays.

However, the days of the weekend do have plural because you can add the 's':

• On Saturday/Saturdays.
• On Sunday/Sundays.

The weekend/ The weekends/ The weekend

To talk about weekend There are some peculiarities to mention.

• If it is singular we say: the weekend.
• If it is plural we say: on weekends.

And, there is also a more informal but widely used abbreviation: the weekend or the weekends.

Its uses

Now let's see how to use days with the verbs ser and estar, and some common mistakes.

With the verb to be

We use the verb to be in the third person singular to mark the day, at any time:

Examples:

• Today IS Thursday.
• Yesterday WAS Wednesday.
• The exam WILL BE next Monday.

With the verb estar

With the verb estar, we can talk about present day and is used in first person plural (we) + a:

Examples:

• Today WE ARE Thursday.
• Today WE ARE ON Sunday.

The we form is used because everyone meets on this day. The verb estar is very supportive and always thinks of others 😁.

To specify 

They are necessary articles determined for specify specific days:

Examples:

• My favorite day is Saturday.
• Last Sunday I had paella with the family.

If we use the plural articles (the), we will be marking a routine, something we do frequently on that day:

Examples:

• ON Thursdays I usually have coffee with my classmates.
• ON Fridays I always go to the club to dance.

Common mistakes

A very common mistake is use the preposition 'in' with the days of the week. 

We NEVER use the preposition 'in' in this sense.

Instead of 'in', we simply put the article. 🤓

Examples:

• In Tuesday I'm going to train. ❌
• TheTuesday I'm going to train. ✅

The months of the year

Now it is the turn of the months of the year.

Names of the months 

Don't you know the names of the 12 months of the year in Spanish?

I tell you: 

JANUARY – The first of the year and one of the coldest ⛄.

FEBRUARY – The shortest month of the year with 28 days. Hence the expression “the short febrerito”. It is the leap year, every 4 years has 29 days.

MARCH – The month of failures in Valencia. Haven't you seen them yet? You have to come. They are amazing!

APRIL – “April thousand waters.” One of the rainiest months in Spain. But, it's already spring!

MAY – The month of flowers! I love the temperature in this month. Neither cold nor hot, perfect for making outdoor plans.

JUNE – The summer appears and people start going to the beach and the pool.

JULY – One of the hottest months and favorites for many. 

AUGUST – Many Spaniards choose your vacation in this month.

SEPTEMBER – Back to school! A month that serves as a reset and planning for the year.

OCTOBER – They arrive the warm colors of autumn. I love the clothes of this season.

NOVEMBER – with Halloween night The month of November begins. Temperatures are getting closer to winter.

DECEMBER – and finally winter and christmas are coming. Days of being at home watching movies and family reunions.

The origin of the names of the months of the year also comes from Ancient Rome.

What is your favorite month? 

Tell me in comments.

Curiosities of the months 

We continue with some curiosities of the monthsIt is important to know them to avoid making mistakes.

They are written in lower case

How are the months of the year written in Spanish? 

In lowercase letter.

There is only two exceptions: first word of the sentence or name of person in the case of 'Julio'.

Examples:

• I like December because I see all my family.
• July is one of the warmest months.
• Julia is very attentive to her clients.

They are all male 

All months of the year in Spanish have the masculine gender. 

ALWAYS If you add adjectives, also put them in the masculine form.

Examples:

• August is very warm. ✅
• August is very warm. ❌

Yes they change in singular and plural 

The months they do allow plural numbers.

For example, it is correct to say 'January' or 'January'.

However, it is more common to add the plural in the word 'month'.

Example:

• The autumn months They have a lovely atmosphere.

Several months together have different names 

Yes We group the months, words are created very useful to learn. 

• 3 months = one quarter.
• 4 months = one quarter.
• 6 months = one semester.
• 12 months = one year.
• 5 years = five years.
• 10 years = a decade.
• 100 years = a century.

Its uses

What is the correct grammar when we talk about months in Spanish?

I'll tell you now! 🏃

With the verb to be

We use the verb to be in the third person singular to indicate the current month. It can also be a past or future month.

Examples:

• IT'S September and it's still hot.
• When I went to New York IT WAS May.

With the verb estar

We can also use the form of 'We are in + month' to talk about the current month. 

Remember that the verb estar is very inclusive. 🙏

Example:

• Now WE ARE IN August.

To specify

Unlike the days of the week, The months do not have an article. 

Examples:

• My favorite month of the year is march. ✅
• My favorite month of the year is THE March. ❌

In the case of specifying a specific day yes We will put it before the day.

Example:

• October 12 It is a holiday in Spain. ✅

Common mistakes

The most common mistake when talking about months is to add the article.

We do NOT put the article with the months directly.

The article is only included in the following cases:

• The + number + of + name of the month.

Example:

April 27 is our anniversary.

• the + month + of + month name.

Example:

The month of November is good for collecting mushrooms.

The seasons of the year

Shall we talk a little about the seasons of the year?

Let's go there!

Station names

The names of the seasons of the year in Spain are autumn, winter, spring and summer.

Don't you know very well what months of the year they are?

Don't worry, I'll classify the seasons of the year in months:

AUTUMN – From the September 22 until the December 20. 

Autumns in Spain are mild, not very cold. 

There is usually rain in these months.

WINTER – From the December 21 until the March 19. 

Depending on the area, winter will be colder or colder. 

In Valencia the temperatures do not usually reach minus 0 and there is also a lot of sun. 😊

SPRING – From the March 20 until the June 20.

It is the season of the year in which the trees bloom more colorfully, the days begin to get longer and the temperature is usually very pleasant.

SUMMER – From the June 21 until the September 21.

The coastal areas attract most of the tourists who usually enjoy the summer on the beaches.

What is your favorite season? Comment at the end and explain to me why. 😉

I wouldn't know which one to choose, each season has its charm and its good things. 😋

Curiosities of the seasons of the year

Grammatical curiosities of the seasons? 

Yes please!

They are written in lowercase

Same as the previous ones, The 4 seasons of the year in Spanish are written in lowercase letters.

Examples:

• In summer I take advantage to travel. ✅
• In winter I have a hard time getting out of bed in the morning. ❌

All in masculine except spring 

All the seasons of the year in Spanish are masculine EXCEPT ‘spring.’ This is feminine.

Examples:

• In winter It gets dark soon.
• The flowers are at their peak in the spring.

Yes they change in singular and plural

This time we can talk about the seasons both singular and plural. 

It sounds totally normal. 👌

Examples:

• every summer I take a trip outside my country.
• in autumn Many new students come.

Its uses 

As before, we see how the stations are used with the verbs to be, to be and to specify.

Come on, you already know it by heart! 😁

With the verb to be

We use the third person singular from the verb to be to indicate the current, past or future season. 

Examples:

• IT'S summer and it's hot.
• IT IS winter and that is why there is snow in some areas.

With the verb estar

What person do we use here? 

I know you know it. 😎

The first person plural of the verb estar: We are in February, we are in September...

Remember that it is always accompanied by the preposition 'en': We are + IN + month/season.

To specify

In the stations we put item to specify?

Yes, like the days of the week.

Example:

• Pedro always has very interesting plans. the summers.

Remember:

The days and seasons- YES ARTICLE.

The months- NO ITEM.

The hours of the day

We come to the last point of this very interesting article; the hours.

Are you liking it?

Surely you are learning a lot. 🙌

How are hours expressed?

Pay attention, because there are some particularities about how tells the time in Spanish what you should know

What time is it? 

To ask the time, we use the verb to be in the third person singular:

Example:

• What time is it?

To answer the question or announce the time, we use the third person plural of the verb to be.

Example:

• IT'S four in the afternoon.

Attention! 📢

We will only use the form 'is' for the one.

Example:

• What time is it?
• “IT’S one in the morning.”

exact moments

There are four ways basics of telling time in Spanish.

We see them with examples:

Examples:

• It's 17:00 – It's five o'clock.
• It's 7:15 p.m. – It's seven o'clock and fourth.
• It's 10:30 – It's ten and a half.
• It's 8:45 – It's nine less quarter.

Everything that is within the first 30 minutes is said with the word “and”.

Examples:

• It's 6:23 – It's six twenty-three.
• It's 11:10 – It's eleven and ten.

what exceeds the first 30 minutes becomes time left for the next hour, that's why we use “less”.

Examples:

• It's 8:35 p.m. – It's twenty-five to nine.
• It's 11:50 p.m. – It's twelve MINUS ten

Differences between What time is it? and what time is it?

“What time is it?” is simply used to ask the time. 

It can also be used in the past:

Example:

• What time was it when the postman arrived?

“What time is it?” is used to ask the start time of something.

Examples:

• What time is the movie?
• What time is the second class?

Hours on the clock activities to practice 

So far so good?

Now let's practice with two exercises of the hours in Spanish. 😊 

Exercise 1

Write the time with words or numbers as appropriate.

What time is it?

• It's 4:30 p.m.  __________ 

• __________  It's three twenty-five in the afternoon.

• __________  It's twenty to eleven at night.

• It's 02:14  __________ 

• __________  It is one eleven.

• It's 08:45  __________ 

• __________ It's ten to seven in the morning.

Solutions exercise 1

1. It's half past four.
2. It's 3:25 p.m.
3. It's 10:40 p.m.
4. It's two fourteen.
5. It's 01:11.
6. It's a quarter to nine.
7. It's 06:50.

Exercise 2

Alfonso is a very organized and meticulous man. Each week he writes down the tasks he must do and the schedules very precisely.

Answer the following questions in words:

1. What time do you start work on Tuesday?
2. What time do you go to the gym on Wednesday?
3. What are you doing on Friday at nine o'clock in the morning?
4. What are you doing on Monday at a quarter past six?
5. What time does Maite pick up from school on Thursday?
6. What time do you have dinner with the family on Friday?
7. What are you doing on Monday at half past eleven?

	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY
9:00	Enter work	Enter work	Go to the hairdresser	Take Maite to school	Day off, continue sleeping
11:30	Have lunch with colleagues	Meet with the boss	Enter work	Make a video call with Pedro	go to the gym
14:45	Lunch break	Lunch with the boss	Lunch break	Pick up Maite from school	Eat with friends
18:15	go back home	Take the car to the workshop	go to the gym	Make the purchase	Go to the movies with the family
21:20	Take a walk	See an episode of a series	Read before sleeping	Read before sleeping	Dinner with family

Solutions exercise 2

1. At nine o'clock.
2. At a quarter past six.
3. Keep sleeping.
4. Come back home.
5. At a quarter to three.
6. At nine twenty.
7. Lunch with colleagues.

Would you like to continue learning more about days, months, seasons and hours?

In the spanish courses of Hispania, Spanish school; You will learn more about time and put into practice all the mentioned grammar with classmates in a real and dynamic environment.

Do you prefer to study the weather from home?

We also offer online Spanish courses. In Hispania, Spanish school; You can learn Spanish anytime, anywhere.

See you!

Article written by Carlos Martinez for Hispania, Spanish school 

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