Meaning
Refers to the current week.
Cultural Background
The week is often viewed through the lens of the 'weekend' which usually starts on Friday. 'This week' often feels like it's building up to the Friday prayer. Social life is very active. Saying 'this week' for a social plan is often a polite way to show interest without committing to a specific day immediately. In Egypt, the phrase 'el-osbou‘ da' is ubiquitous. Egyptians might use it to mean 'sometime soon' in a very relaxed sense. In professional settings, 'this week' is strictly Sunday to Thursday. Thursday night is the start of the social 'week'.
Drop the 'fī'
Native speakers rarely say 'in this week'. Just say 'this week' directly as a time marker.
Gender Check
Never use 'hādhihi' with 'usbū‘'. It's a common mistake because 'week' is feminine in many other languages.
Meaning
Refers to the current week.
Drop the 'fī'
Native speakers rarely say 'in this week'. Just say 'this week' directly as a time marker.
Gender Check
Never use 'hādhihi' with 'usbū‘'. It's a common mistake because 'week' is feminine in many other languages.
Dialect Shortcut
If you are in Lebanon or Jordan, just say 'hal-usbū‘'. It makes you sound much more like a local.
Insha'Allah
When talking about plans 'this week', it's culturally common to add 'Insha'Allah' (God willing).
Test Yourself
Fill in the blank with the correct demonstrative pronoun.
____ الأسبوع طويل جداً. (This week is very long.)
'Usbū‘' is masculine, so 'hādha' is the correct choice.
Which sentence correctly says 'I have a meeting this week'?
Select the correct Arabic translation:
This version correctly uses the masculine 'hādha' and the definite 'al-usbū‘'.
Complete the dialogue naturally.
أحمد: هل أنت مشغول غداً؟ سارة: نعم، أنا مشغولة جداً ____.
Given the context of being busy, 'this week' is the most natural temporal extension of 'tomorrow'.
Match the phrase to the most likely situation.
'سأنهي العمل هذا الأسبوع'
This phrase is a typical commitment to a deadline in a work environment.
🎉 Score: /4
Visual Learning Aids
MSA vs Dialect
Practice Bank
4 exercises____ الأسبوع طويل جداً. (This week is very long.)
'Usbū‘' is masculine, so 'hādha' is the correct choice.
Select the correct Arabic translation:
This version correctly uses the masculine 'hādha' and the definite 'al-usbū‘'.
أحمد: هل أنت مشغول غداً؟ سارة: نعم، أنا مشغولة جداً ____.
Given the context of being busy, 'this week' is the most natural temporal extension of 'tomorrow'.
'سأنهي العمل هذا الأسبوع'
This phrase is a typical commitment to a deadline in a work environment.
🎉 Score: /4
Frequently Asked Questions
12 questionsIt is masculine. Always use 'hādha'.
Yes, it is grammatically correct but less common in casual speech.
Usually, yes. If you speak on a Monday, it includes the coming Friday/Saturday.
Use 'al-usbū‘ al-māḍī' (the past week).
The plural is 'asābī‘' (أسابيع).
In Egypt, it's 'el-osbou‘ da'. In the Levant, it's 'hal-osbou‘'.
Just add it to a future verb: 'سأسافر هذا الأسبوع'.
In Arabic, nouns following a demonstrative must be definite.
No, for that use 'kulla usbū‘'.
MSA uses 'hādha al-usbū‘', dialects shorten or rearrange it.
Yes, it's the standard way to discuss weekly goals and deadlines.
It's a voiced pharyngeal fricative. Tighten your throat slightly as you finish the word.
Related Phrases
الأسبوع القادم
similarNext week
الأسبوع الماضي
contrastLast week
نهاية الأسبوع
specialized formWeekend
طوال الأسبوع
builds onAll week long
كل أسبوع
similarEvery week
