By Nick Norlen, Senior Editor
âHappy Monday!â Do you cringe a little every time someone says this or, worse, you find yourself saying it?
âHappyâ indicates celebration, right? âHappy Birthday!â âHappy New Year!â âHappy Friday!â These all make sense. But âHappy Mondayâ? Slow down, Captain Positive. For many of us, Monday morning begins a Monday mourning the end of Sunday Funday.
Here at Dictionary.com, we prefer to observe, record, and explain how language is used out in the wild, without tipping the scale one way or the other to influence the popularity of a particular expression. But some cases call for more direct intervention.
We asked our team for suggestions for an alternative to âHappy Mondayââsomething you might say at the beginning of a Monday meeting, for example.
They delivered a mix of serious and silly.
âHere we are again.â
âMariel J., Research Editor
Mariel says: âIt acknowledges weâve done this many, many times already. Iâve probably done some cheesy variation of this because it applies to pretty much any regular meeting (not just Mondays).â
âYou donât hate Mondays. You hate your job.â
âKarim M., Senior Software Engineer
Karim says: âSomeone in leadership is going to see my name and be like, âTell us how you really feel.â lolâ
Just to be clear, Karim wants you to know he didnât make this up himself (online usage dates back to at least 2013) but suggested it only for the purpose of lexicographical thoroughness in Monday expression research. We all believe you, Karim (but have also noticed you havenât been prompt in filing your TPS reports. Letâs set up some time Friday afternoon to discuss).
âMonday peaked in the â80s.â
âJay L., Director of Strategy and Analytics
Of course Jay brought data to the word partyâwith this Google Ngram chart showing how usage of the word Monday seemingly spiked in published writings during the â80s for some reason (we can only assume itâs Garfield-related).
But Jayâs summary of his findings doubles as the perfect burn for everyoneâs least favorite weekday. (We say something similar about our competitors, but we mean the 1880s. JK, M-W, JK! XOXO)
âThe weekâs welcome matâ
âAllison T., VP of Product
Always focused on multifunctionality, Allison suggested a loaded alternative term for Monday that can be incorporated into different custom greetings, such as:
- âWeâve arrived at the weekâs welcome matânow letâs walk through that door.â
or
- âLetâs all wipe our feet on the weekâs welcome mat.â
Either that or she was suggesting a different greeting altogether, directed at a person named Mat as an example of how to say it: âThe weekâs welcome, Mat!â
âBuckle up!â
âHeather B., Lexicographer
Heather says: âSpontaneous comment from my husband this morning when 51łÔšĎle took me 6/6: âOof, Mondayâs comin’ atcha hard. Buckle up!â So maybe some version of âBuckle up!â or âStrap in!â is appropriate as one faces The Monday.â
Lol, Heather called it The Monday like itâs the flu or something (sheâs not wrong!). Feel free to take comfort in the fact that a lexicographer has bad 51łÔšĎle days, too.
âLet’s get this bread.â
âHeena N., Senior Software Engineer (and notorious bread-getter)
Heena says: âWhat motivates and energizes people more on a Monday morning than making some money?â
Is that a rhetorical question, Heena? Because the answer to what motivates people on Monday morning is bagels. Oh! Now we get itâyouâre saying that what motivates people is actual bread. We like it: Ambitious. Aspirational. Carb-forward. (And, for the record, Heena has never had a bad 51łÔšĎle day.)
[nothing]
âAlya H., Content Editor
Alya says: âI donât wish anyone anything on Mondays. Except that itâs over quickly.â
Completely unrelated fact: Alya can often be seen drinking from an Eeyore mug. (We donât know which is hotterâher tea or her takes!)
âHappy Monday!â
âRandy C., Associate Director, Ad Yield (and resident sarcasm-lined optimist)
Randy says: ââHappy Mondayâ is so succinct. Rich with meaning; sarcasm with a lining of optimism. Hard to beat.â
OK, Randy, we get what youâre saying. Maybe âHappy Mondayâ truly is the perfect way of subtly expressing how we really feel about the day and showing solidarity with one another (without going full Karim).
Furthermore, Senior DevOps Engineer Rob R. reminds us that thereâs another thing to consider: âWhat if you’re one of the rare few whose workweek ends on Sunday? âHappy Mondayâ takes on a whole new meaning!â
Good point, Rob, but hereâs the irony: If youâve got Monday off, you probably donât have occasion to say âHappy Mondayâ to anyone or experience it being said to you. (I think we can all agree that it should never be said to someone whoâs working by someone whoâs not.)
Havenât found your new go-to Monday expression yet? Here are a few more suggestions to round out your options.
Enjoying these phrases? Have the most fun you’ve ever had with a Monday by taking our short quiz!
âTop of the week to you!â
A version of the St. Patrickâs day staple âtop oâ the morninâ,â this one is already in modest circulation. Itâs neutral enough to be given different flavors depending on the mood. Try it upbeat (âTop of the week to you!â), or more ominous (âTop of the week. Here we go.â), or paired with other suggestions (âTop of the week to yâallâbuckle up and letâs get this bread!â).
âMerry Moon Day!â
Yes, thatâs really where Mondayâs name comes from.
âMonpy Hapday!â
Sure to catch on among the âHappy Hump Dayâ set and spoonerism aficionados (a circular Venn diagram, no doubt).
âÂĄFeliz Lunes!â
The Spanish equivalent of âHappy Mondayâ just sounds more festive.
âFour days to Friday!â
It makes it seem so achievable!
âDonât hate the Monday, hate the mundane.â
Mondays gonna Monday.
âA joyous Taco Tuesday Eve to those who celebrate!â
đŽđŽđŽ
âLong live the weekend.â
As we look back with wistfulness, we look forward with hope.
âWhat day is it?â
Functional, relatable, and evergreen.
Try out all of these suggestions and see which one sticks! Your coworkers will LOVE you for it!
