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Months of the year in English

January, February, March — the 12 months with IPA, short explanations and examples you can listen to. Plus how to say a date and when to use in or on. Three exercises at the end help them stick.

  • 12 months
  • Audio and IPA
  • Dates and prepositions
  • 3 exercises
  • No sign-up
To the monthsPractice

How to talk about months in English

Months always start with a capital letter: January, not january. Use in with a month (in May, in December) and on with a date (on the 5th of May, on May 5th).

In British English you say “the fifth of May”, in American English “May fifth”. Written dates differ too: 05/06 is 5 June in the UK but 6 May in the US — so in emails it’s safer to write the month as a word: 5 June 2027.

The months of the year

From January to December — plus the words you need to say a date. Tap a word or an example to hear it.

Speed
  1. the 1st month
  2. the 2nd month
  3. the 3rd month
  4. the 4th month
  5. the 5th month
  6. the 6th month
  7. the 7th month
  8. the 8th month
  9. the 9th month
  10. the 10th month
  11. the 11th month
  12. the 12th month
  13. one of the 12 parts of a year
  14. 12 months
  15. the day of the month

Practice: test yourself

10 words from the list per round. After every answer you hear the word and the right option lights up.

Choose an exercise

How to remember the months

  • Start with your family’s birthdays: who was born in January, who in August — linking words to people makes them stick.
  • Mind the stress: SepTEMber, ocTOber, noVEMber, deCEMber are stressed on the second syllable, JAnuary and FEbruary on the first.
  • June and July are easy to mix up: June has one syllable [dʒuːn], July has two, stressed on the second [dʒuˈlaɪ].
  • Say today’s date aloud every morning: “Today is the thirtieth of October”. You practise months and ordinal numbers at once.

FAQ

Didn’t find your answer? Send us a request — we’ll tell you everything.

Why are months capitalised in English?

English capitalises proper nouns, and months (like days of the week) are proper nouns. So it’s always January, March, September — even in the middle of a sentence.

Do I use in or on with months?

In with the month on its own: in July, in July 2026. On when there’s a day: on the 3rd of July, on July 3rd. In is for longer periods (months, years), on is for days.

How do you abbreviate the months?

The first three letters, with or without a full stop: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Aug, Sep (or Sept), Oct, Nov, Dec. May, June and July are usually written in full.

How do you read a date in English?

British: “the fifteenth of March”; American: “March fifteenth”. The day is always an ordinal number — first, second, third, fourth… Years are read in pairs: 2026 is “twenty twenty-six”.

What’s next

Next step

Keep learning with a mini-course

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