Let’s imagine it’s currently Wednesday the 1st. Does “next Saturday” mean Saturday the 4th (the next Saturday to occur) or Saturday the 11th (the Saturday of next week)?

  • maniacal_gaff@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    The 11th. “This” is the upcoming. “Next” is the one after that.

    Source: being a human being and scheduling stuff with people for many decades

  • g0nz0li0@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Saturday the 4th is part of “this week” so it’s “this Saturday”.

    Saturday the 11th is part of “next week” so it’s “next Saturday”.

    Otherwise “next Saturday” and “Saturday next week” would mean different things.

    • BananaTrifleViolin@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Yeah, it’d be great if that were the case. But Saturday the 4th is also just the next Saturday in terms of Saturdays.

      It’s an ambiguous term and so always needs clarify gbas you and the person you’re talking to may be thinking along different lines.

      • g0nz0li0@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I think we can all agree it’s confusing. I am just pointing out that there is an internal consistency in why it’s phrased in this way.

  • bitchkat@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    “This Saturday” is the first Saturday occurring in the next 7 days. "“Next Saturday” is the one after “This Saturday”.

  • JubilantJaguar@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Approximately 5 days before the day in question, “next” becomes “this”.

    That’s the answer.

    Excellent question that has always bothered me too.

  • Contramuffin@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    The way I interpret it is that “next Sunday” is the same as saying “next week’s Sunday.” Meanwhile, “this sunday” refers to “this week’s Sunday.” So if it’s Friday and I want to meet 5 days from now, I would call it next Wednesday. But if it’s Monday and I want to meet 5 days from now, I call it this Saturday

    But also, anyone with even a bit of courtesy would give a full date, along with the day of the week, if they’re the to schedule something

  • StephniBefni@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    This Saturday is the Saturday that is occurring in that week, i.e. the 4th, and next Saturday would be the 11th.

  • Anamnesis@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I’d interpret “next Saturday” as the one on the 11th, and “this Saturday” as the one on the 4th.

  • bus_factor@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I’ve found that the meaning depends on regional differences in both English and Norwegian, and as a result I never use “next Sunday”. I say “Sunday in a week and a half” or the date instead.

  • Cosmic Cleric@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    ‘This’ is the first Saturday, ‘next’ is the second Saturday, from whatever day that you are in.

      • Deez@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        Disagree. Even if it’s Sunday, the rule still applies.

          • Cosmic Cleric@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            ‘This’ is the first Saturday, ‘next’ is the second Saturday, from whatever day that you are in.

            Not wegen today is Sunday

            What?

            You heard them.

            I’m asking for clarification, I do not know what’s trying to be communicated.

              • Cosmic Cleric@lemmy.world
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                1 year ago

                Autocorrect massacred the word when. Now my post should make more sense

                Thanks for the correction and the reply, now it makes more sense.

                Man I feel like I really earned that correction with some of the replies I got. :p

                This’ is the first Saturday, ‘next’ is the second Saturday, from whatever day that you are in.

                Not *when today is Sunday

                Actually what I said still works. If you’re on a Sunday, you have one Saturday in front of you still, and you would say “this Saturday”.

  • Ejh3k@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I think a lot of people are over thinking this. I don’t think anyone would say next Saturday meaning this Saturday at all. You’d just say Saturday.

    Like, “I’m going to see dune 2 Saturday.” There is no need to clarify which Saturday it’s going to be if you don’t muddy it by trying to qualify it needlessly.

    So next Saturday should always be the Saturday after this upcoming one.

    • Worx@lemmynsfw.comOP
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      1 year ago

      Right? But no, actually wrong. I said “next Saturday” thinking it was obvious, and 4/9 people thought I meant this Saturday

    • experbia@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I don’t think anyone would say next Saturday meaning this Saturday at all

      I am someone who does this. I know it’s convention to say “this Saturday” for that, but when I’m not thinking about it too hard, it just comes out as “next Saturday” aka “the next Saturday I will experience after this very moment” aka what you would call “this Saturday”. I usually have to immediately follow up with a disambiguation, because I usually only catch myself after having said it.

  • bobzilla@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Just stop being ambiguous. Give a specific date, because based on the number of answers here “next Saturday” could mean anything from last week to 6 years from now (yes, I’m being dramatic for effect).

    • prime_number_314159@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      When we get to this Saturday, next Saturday moves a week beyond our grasp. In some sense, when we die, our own timeline ends, and we can finally arrive at next Saturday for the first time.

      Because the longest lives are around 110 years, and children start speaking around 3, the furthest in the future “next Saturday” can be is abouy 107 years.

  • stackPeek@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    The “Next Saturday” is just the next Saturday, the closest Saturday right? Or does it work differently in English?

    • bitchkat@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      You are describing “This Saturday”. Next Saturday is the one after that It’s just like “this week” indicates something within the next 7 days and “next week” occurs 1 day after the end of “this week”. So if its Wednesday, “this week” goes through Tuesday and the following Wednesday starts “Next Week”.

    • experbia@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      i agree with this and don’t even think about it because it makes so much obvious sense, and i confuse people often who believe it to mean the one after the next one (aka “this” one) smh

    • Worx@lemmynsfw.comOP
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      1 year ago

      That’s what I’m trying to find out. Most people seem to think that you’re wrong, and that it would be “this Saturday” if it’s this week, and “next Saturday” is the one after that. So if you’re on Sunday then “this Saturday” would be yesterday and “next Saturday” would be six days. But usually, “next Saturday” is more than 7 days away

      • Bahalex@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I say next Saturday for the Saturday that will occur soonest.

        If someone waiting at a bus stop asks me which bus goes to the train station, I say the “the next one”. Meaning the one that will appear first at the bus stop, not the one after that. Which makes sense for days of the week too, to me anyway.

        I am always being corrected, though.