This is your go-to guide to giovedì, the word for Thursday in Italian. Learn how to pronounce giovedì, how to use it and the important grammar details you need, all in one place. I’ve included plenty of examples too.
Not only that, find out about what’s open and what’s not on Thursdays in Italy from someone who actually lives there!
Andiamo! Let’s go!
Table of Contents
ALL ABOUT THURSDAY IN ITALIAN
The word for Thursday in Italian is giovedì.
Giovedì comes from Giove, the Italian word for Jupiter. So giovedì is like “Jupiter-day”.
Gio. is the abbreviation for giovedì (Thursday in Italian).
Giovedì is a masculine singular noun.
All of the other Italian days of the week are masculine too, except for domenica (Sunday) which is a feminine singular noun.
HOW TO PRONOUNCE GIOVEDÌ
The pronunciation of giovedì is: jee-oh-veh-DEE
Listen to the pronunciation of giovedì here:
The accent on the ì in giovedì tells you that it is stressed, so the accent is on the last syllable.
Italian nouns which have an accented last syllable do not change in the plural form. So giovedì is both the singular and plural of Thursday in Italian. Some other examples are città (city), tivù (TV), and comò (chest of drawers).
IS THURSDAY IN ITALIAN CAPITALIZED?
Like all of the other Italian days of the week (and months of the year), giovedì is not capitalized.
HOW TO USE GIOVEDÌ
The grammar rules in this section hold true for all of the days of the week in Italian, not just Thursday.
WITHOUT THE DEFINITE ARTICLE
When you use giovedì alone without the definite article, you are referring to that specific Thursday.
For example, giovedì (vado al mercato) means This Thursday (I’m going to the market).
WITH THE DEFINITE ARTICLE
The correct definite article for giovedì is il, because it’s a masculine noun. When we use the definite article with giovedì (or any other day of the week), it is like saying every, and refers to an action that will repeat.
For example, Il giovedì (vado al mercato) means Every Thursday (I go to the market), or On Thursdays (I go to the market).
You can also use the definite article to talk about Thursdays in general.
For example: Adoro il giovedì perché vado sempre al mercato! I love Thursdays because I always go to the market!
IN THE PLURAL
Another way to say every Thursday is tutti i giovedì. Literally, tutti i giovedì means all the Thursdays.
Vado al mercato tutti i giovedì.
I go to the market every Thursday.
Remember, because the last syllable of giovedì is accented, its ending doesn’t change in the plural form.
WITH THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE
The correct indefinite article for giovedì is un. You can use the indefinite article in a couple ways.
To talk about a Thursday, for example:
Un giovedì di settembre siamo andati al mare.
On a Thursday in September we went to the beach.
Non mi ricordo la data del concerto, ma era un giovedì.
I don’t remember the date of the concert, but it was on a Thursday.
To talk about something that will take place on a Thursday, or some Thursday coming up:
Perchè non andiamo a prendere un caffè un giovedì?
Why don’t we go get a coffee on a Thursday/some Thursday?
NEXT AND LAST THURSDAY
To talk about a Thursday in the past or in the future, use scorso (next) and prossimo (last).
Giovedì prossimo andiamo a Milano per 2 giorni.
Next Thursday we’re going to Milan for 2 Days.
Giovedì scorso siamo andati a Ravenna.
Last Thursday we went to Ravenna.
HELPFUL ITALIAN WORDS TO USE WITH GIOVEDÌ
Here are some helpful Italian words that we often use with giovedì and the other days of the week:
| mattina | morning |
| pomeriggio | afternoon |
| sera | evening |
| notte | night |
| chiuso | closed |
| aperto | open |
Giovedì mattina il forno è aperto.
Thursday morning the bakery is open.
Giovedì pomeriggio la piscina è chiuso.
Thursday afternoon the pool is closed.
And of course, you can also talk about a specific time on Thursday, for example giovedì alle 15 (Thursday at 3pm). Read this post for all about how to talk about the time of day in Italian.
WHAT’S OPEN ON THURSDAY IN ITALY?
Giovedì is the fourth day of the Italian work week– the weekend is in sight!
Most public Italian offices are open from Monday through Friday (da lunedì a venerdì), while most shops and businesses are open from Monday through Saturday (da lunedì a sabato).
School days in Italy are from Monday through Friday (da lunedì a venerdì). Some Italian middle schools also have half days on Saturday.
SPECIAL EVENTS ON THURSDAYS IN ITALY
Many Italian towns, and big city neighborhoods, have a weekly outdoor market. Market day is a special day, with more people coming in from the area to come shopping. Depending on the market, there may be everything from housewares to hats to food!
Some places in Italy that hold their weekly outdoor market on Thursday mornings are:
- Bardolino, a lovely small town right on Lake Garda
- Grottaglie, Puglia– famous for its hand-painted ceramics
- Via San Marco in the Brera neighborhood of Milan, on Mondays and Thursdays
- Viareggio, a town on the Tuscan coast famous for its Carnevale celebrations
- San Gimignano, Tuscany
- Montepulciano, Tuscany famous for its red wine
WHAT IS CLOSED ON THURSDAY IN ITALY?
Most museums and archeological sites are open on Thursdays. However in Italy it’s always a good idea to double check if the museum you have your heart set on is open!
For example, Museo Stibbert, my kids’ favorite museum in Florence, is closed on Thursdays.
It’s also a good idea to check if you want to go to a specific store or restaurant. Italian businesses often have a giorno di riposo (day of rest) or giorno di chiusura (closed day). It’s already a given that most shops are closed on Sunday. The giorno di riposo is an additional morning or afternoon (or both) during the week when the shop is closed.
In Italy, it is common for all of the local shops in a small town to be closed at the same time on the giorno di riposo (day of rest). For example, in Tavarnelle Val di Pesa, a small Tuscan town where some of my Italian family lives, most of the shops are closed on Thursday afternoons.
Keep this in mind when planning a trip to a small Italian village!
WHAT IMPORTANT ITALIAN HOLIDAYS ARE ON THURSDAY?
Most important Italian holidays, like Ferragosto and Christmas, are on the same date every year, so from year to year they fall on a different day of the week. The same can’t be said for giovedì santo, which is a movable feast..
Giovedì santo means Holy Thursday. In the Catholic calendar, it commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus, and the end of the Lent period (Quaresima). It is part of the Holy Week celebrations leading up to Easter.
Giovedì santo is a religious holiday, but is not a public holiday in Italy, so offices, businesses and stores are open.
Read more about the Days of the Week and the Months of the Year in Italian!