Tuesday in French
Mardi in English: Tuesday
Updated May 2026
mardi = martial = Mars. Reference card with native audio, IPA, Latin etymology, and naturalistic sentence examples.
Etymology
Mars
Latin: dies Martis = “Day of Mars”
Mardi comes from Latin dies Martis, 'day of Mars'. Mars was the Roman god of war and one of the most-worshipped deities in the Roman pantheon. The English month of March, the adjective 'martial', and the festival name Mardi Gras (literally 'fat Tuesday') all share this Mars root.
English cognates: martial, March, Mardi Gras
Pronunciation
The 'r' in mardi is the classic French uvular fricative /ʁ/, made by constricting or vibrating the uvula at the very back of the throat. It is nothing like the English alveolar 'r'. Try gargling lightly with no water to find the muscle position. The 'ar' itself is open and similar to English 'art'.
Common mistake
Trilling the 'r' like Spanish or Italian
Correct: Use the back of the throat, not the tongue tip
Sentence Examples
Real-world usage drawn from CNRTL attested corpora and naturalistic everyday French. Tap any sentence to hear it spoken.
On se voit mardi prochain.
See you next Tuesday.
Prochain follows the day name in French, the opposite of English word order.
Mardi est mon jour prefere.
Tuesday is my favourite day.
Subject use, no article.
Mardi Gras a la Nouvelle-Orleans.
Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
Famous French-origin festival, celebrated worldwide.
Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras (literally 'fat Tuesday') is the day before Ash Wednesday and the final day of Carnival. The name reflects the Catholic tradition of consuming rich food before the Lenten fast. The festival is celebrated in French-speaking regions across the world: New Orleans, French-speaking Canada, Mauritius, and the Caribbean. Larousse documents the festival under both its religious and its civic-cultural meaning.
Related Days
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