Thursday

noun

Thurs·​day ˈthərz-(ˌ)dā  -dē 

: the fifth day of the week

Thursdays

ˈthərz-(ˌ)dāz  -dēz 

adverb

Examples of Thursday in a Sentence

He was late last Thursday.

We went on Thursday and returned on Saturday.

Recent Examples on the Web

On a Thursday evening, Karina was eating Chips Ahoy! —Sarah Stillman, New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2025

New York Helicopter Tours, the company that owned the helicopter that plummeted into the Hudson River near the New Jersey shoreline last Thursday, killing all six people on board, is shutting down its operations immediately, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). —Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 14 Apr. 2025

Richard Dearlove, the former head of British intelligence agency MI6, said in a USA TODAY interview on Thursday that Trump was right to try to talk to the Iranians. —Kim Hjelmgaard, USA Today, 14 Apr. 2025

The Supreme Court on Thursday said the Trump administration must facilitate the release of the man, who lives in Maryland, from custody, but ordered additional proceedings before a federal district court. —Kathryn Watson, CBS News, 14 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English thursdæg, from Old Norse thōrsdagr; akin to Old English thunresdæg Thursday, Old Norse Thōrr Thor, Old English thunor thunder — more at thunder entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing Thursday

• Holy Thursday
• Maundy Thursday

Rhymes for Thursday

• airway
• allay
• archway
• array
• ashtray
• astray
• aue
• away
• ballet
• belay
• beltway
• beret

Kids Definition

Thursday

noun

Thurs·​day ˈthərz-dē 

: the fifth day of the week

Etymology

Old English thursdæg, from early Norse thōrsdagr, literally "day of Thor"

Word Origin

Among the many gods worshiped by the Germanic people who lived in northern Europe in ancient times was one whose name was Thor. Thor was the god of thunder, weather, and crops. In the early Norse language, the fifth day of the week was known as thōrsdagr, literally "day of Thor," in his honor. The Norse name came into Old English as thursdæg, which in time became the Modern English Thursday.