How do you say Weekend in German?

Whether you’re planning a getaway, catching up on sleep, or just avoiding emails - Germans call it the Wochenende. It’s the pause button after five days of work and school, and one of the most beloved words in any language.

The noun Wochenende means weekend, and it’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German. You’ll hear it everywhere - from workplace chats and radio ads to family plans and road trip dreams.

It’s a neuter noun, so we say das Wochenende.

Pronunciation

Wochenende is pronounced approximately [VOKH-uhn-en-duh], with short o and the Bach sound.

• Woch sounds like “vokh” - a short o, and the throaty ch as in Bach,
• en is short, like “uhn,”
• de is a soft “duh,”
• Stress is on the first syllable: WOCH-en-en-de

It rolls out like a countdown to freedom.

Example sentences:

• Am Wochenende fahren wir zu meinen Eltern.We’re going to my parents’ place for the weekend.
• Ich habe das ganze Wochenende durchgeschlafen.I slept through the whole weekend.

Nuance and usage tips

Wochenende is a compound noun:

• Woche = week
• Ende = end

Put them together and you get “end of the week” - but culturally, it means Saturday and Sunday, the traditional days off for most Germans.

1. Common phrases
   • schönes Wochenende! - Have a nice weekend!
   • am Wochenende - on the weekend
     übers Wochenende - over the weekend
   • Wochenendtrip - weekend trip
   • verlängertes Wochenende - long weekend
2. Cultural note
   • Many stores in Germany are closed on Sundays, so Samstag (Saturday) is when most errands happen.

Its antonym? Not a true opposite, but Wochenbeginn (start of the week) or just Montag (Monday) might fill that role.