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

The museum is closed today, Thursday, May 22, following the shooting. —Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 23 May 2025

The former drummer from the metalcore band The Devil Wears Prada was killed after a private airplane crashed into a San Diego neighborhood on Thursday morning, his father told TMZ. —Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 23 May 2025

In an Instagram Story post shared by Kardashian on Thursday, May 22, the grad showed off a pink cake gifted to her by Disick, 41. —Angel Saunders, People.com, 23 May 2025

The University of San Diego and San Diego State both lost Thursday to drop into the losers’ brackets of their respective double-elimination conference baseball tournaments. —Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 May 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.