Readers of this blog often ask us for conversational English. They want to learn phrases for chatting informally with friends and colleagues. To help with this, some of our blog posts focus on the sort of conversations that we all have during the course of a day or a week. In this post, we’re looking at what you can say on a Monday when someone asks ‘How was your weekend?’
Perhaps you didn’t do much at the weekend, in which case, you can say:
It was nice, thanks. I didn’t actually do very much, but it was quite relaxing.
I didn’t feel so great, actually, so I didn’t do very much.
(Notice that ‘thanks’ is often included in the response.)
You might describe a weekend when you didn’t do very much as ‘quiet‘, saying:
It was quiet, actually. (US)/ I had a quiet one, actually. (UK) I did a bit of reading, made some nice food and watched a film. How about you?
(Notice the enquiry ‘How about you?’ It’s polite to ask this – and also quite useful when you haven’t got much to say yourself!)
If your weekend was relaxing, you might use the informal word chilled in UK English or chill in US English:
It was nice, thanks – quite chilled. (UK)
It was pretty chill, thanks. (US)
A weekend that was very relaxed, in which you did nothing that needed effort may be described as lazy:
I had a really nice, lazy Saturday, reading and watching a film.
You might instead say you lazed around (= relaxed and did very little):
I lazed around in my pyjamas (UK)/pajamas (US) most of Saturday.
In UK English, if you stayed in bed later than usual in the morning, you can say you had a lie-in:
I was really tired, so I had a lie-in on Saturday.
If you slept more at the weekend because you didn’t sleep enough during the week before, you might say you caught up on some/your sleep:
It was a very nice weekend, thanks. I finally caught up on some sleep.
A useful ‘weekend verb’ meaning ‘to do things in a relaxed way, without hurrying or making an effort’ is potter (UK), putter (US):
I had a very relaxing Sunday, just pottering around in the garden.
Of course, not all weekends are quiet or lazy! Perhaps you had a very sociable weekend, spending lots of time with other people. Maybe you saw a friend you hadn’t seen for a while, in which case you can say you caught up with them:
I had a very sociable weekend, actually. I caught up with a couple of London friends. It was fun.
If you had a guest sleeping at your house, you can say a friend stayed over:
We had some old friends staying over, which was great.
A weekend that is very busy may be described as hectic:
The whole weekend was quite hectic with house guests and parties, but it was fun.
Whatever you’re doing this weekend, we hope it’s fun – and not too hectic!
Can I say that I just vegged out in the couch?
Thanks for answering.
You certainly can. Sounds great!
It’s was okay and relax weekend .
This is me I’m really interested to see this going forward I’m ready for you and I will obey
Excellent guide yo learn ir refresh our knowkedge and also compare the english words in UK and USA
You could say, I just vegged out or I vegged out ON the couch. Though honestly, your version would be understood. Best wishes.
Yes I will give it to her
Well,there’s actually no boundary between weekend and weekday for me since I am A college stundent having winter vacation.I dont even recongnize what day is it today!!
ou may vegged out in the couch. Vegging out is, indeed, an accurate way of describing what happened.
“Vegging Out” has long been accepted slang for doing nothing but watching TV or lounging. The term “veg” came into popular usage during the late 1990s, when the Internet experienced rapid expansion and offered people easy access to information about vegetable garden cultivation. People who searched the web for gardening information soon used “veg” as shorthand because it seemed like so much fun! The term gradually transformed from vegetable-related terms to common expressions of boredom or exhaustion. As such, today ‘vegging-out’ can also be used in place of ‘napping’. It is thought
Thank you very much. This is very good. It gives me many words and expressions that I really need not only for weekend chatting but also for everyday conversations.
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you found it useful.
Can I use mellowing weekend ? Rest of the new words are super and learn a lot. Thanks for this phrases which I use in my future. Different thoughts and new way of expression.
i feel like i have not done anything beneficial, it makes me sad but i feel like i don t have energy like mine young ages.
you search positive
Dear Kate,
Thanks for sharing all these useful expressions.
You’re very welcome, Roxana. I’m so glad you found them useful.
Very useful. Thank you.
Thank for your motivation
I believe there needs a correction in the sentence – You might instead ‘say’ you lazed around (= relaxed and did very little)
One more thing, ma’am. Is there any way of writing to you ?
I will appreciate, if there’s one 🙂
Thank you very much for your correction. We have updated the post.
If you want to get in touch with our writers about the their blog posts, you can do it here in the comments sections.
Best wishes
Very informative!
Dear Kate, could you possibly shed light on the exact meaning of ‘catch up with sb’?
You say ‘… you saw a friend…’; howbeit, this dictionary doesn’t define the phrasal verb ‘catch up’ as to actually meet somebody in person. Instead, the dictionary gives the following definitions of this phrasal verb:
to reach the same quality or standard as someone or something else;
to do something you did not have time to do earlier; and:
to learn or discuss the latest news.
As you can see, nothing says about an actual meeting with somebody in person.
At the same time, the noun ‘catch-up’ in UK English (according to the dictionary) means a meeting at which people discuss what has happened since the last time that they met. On the contrary, the phrase ‘catch up with sb’ is being used to talk about problems of some sorts as in ‘His lies will catch up with him one day.’ or ‘They had been selling stolen cars for years before the police caught up with them.’
With that in mind, can the phrasal verb ‘catch up with sb’ mean to actually meet somebody in person to discuss the latest news with them, or does it just mean to discuss the latest news with somebody without suggesting any particular way you do it (online, through a phone call or an actual meeting, etc.)?
For instance, when I say that I caught up with my friends this weekend, does it mean that I met them, or that we just exchanged our latest news (with no implication of an actual meeting)? Or when I ask my friend ‘Why don’t we catch up tomorrow?’, does it mean ‘Why don’t we meet in person and share some news?’ or just ‘Why don’t we share our latest news?’?
Hi Denis and good morning I have a kind of silly question for you. It’s about the whole pm/am changeover that happens at midnight, everyday ( and I’m still not sure how it works).
Ok so, is tomorrow for you right now for me.?
Hi Henry, and good evening. I have no idea when tomorrow is for you. 🙂
Hi Denis, it’s a bit fuzzy. In normal, ie non-pandemic, times, I think if you told me you’d caught up with friends at the weekend, I’d assume you met them in person. The strict sense of ‘catch up’ is probably ‘to hear someone’s news’ but I think people also use it to mean ‘to meet someone and hear their news.’ Best wishes!
My Australian friend says “sleep over” instead of “stay over”, is it the same in UK English?
Hi Ivy! ‘Sleep over’ is certainly used in UK English though personally, I tend to use to more for children. Best wishes from Cambridge.
Thank you for your answer, Kate. My Australian friend happens to be a tweenager!
Really Really Bad I mean nice
I played video games
You never disappoint ma’am. Again, such a wonderful post. I only wish, the frequency of your posts to be more but still I find appreciation and contentment even in this.
Lots of love and respect, ma’am 🙂
Thanks, Mamoon! What a lovely comment! Best wishes from Cambridge.
Is very nice thank you
How about: I’m more of an indoorsy person so I stayed at home.. Can we say ‘indoorsy or outdoorsy’ person?
Kristina, good question. You do hear people use these words in spoken English, yes, especially ‘outdoorsy. Best wishes.
Thanks for sharing these beneficial phrases as well as it made my day!! By the way my weekend went off wonderfully as just i planned 🙂
Well, I’m very pleased to hear that, Ghania! Best wishes from Cambridge.
Thank you very much.
You’re very welcome!
Nice article and content, thank you ver much for sharing your knowledge and experience with us,
take care and best regards
Alex
Thanks, Carros! You’re very welcome!