Learn Hardcore Arabic (Modern Standard): في عطلة نهاية الأسبوع عندنا دعوة إلى بيت صديقتنا على الغداء. - During the weekend holiday, we have an invitation to our friend's house for lunch.

Breakdown of في عطلة نهاية الأسبوع عندنا دعوة إلى بيت صديقتنا على الغداء.

Why does the sentence begin with في عطلة نهاية الأسبوع?

Because Arabic often starts with a time expression to set the scene first.

So في عطلة نهاية الأسبوع means at the weekend / during the weekend.

Starting with the time phrase is very natural in Arabic, just like English can say:

It does not mean the rest of the sentence is less important; it just gives the time first.

What exactly does عطلة نهاية الأسبوع mean, and how is it built?

عطلة نهاية الأسبوع literally means something like the holiday/break of the end of the week, i.e. the weekend.

It is an iḍāfa structure, or construct phrase:

So:

This kind of noun chaining is very common in Arabic.

Why is there no ال on عطلة, even though the phrase means the weekend?