生日
birthday
HSK level
- Pinyin
- shēngrì
- Part of speech
- noun
- Level
- HSK 2
- Strokes
- 9
- Register
- neutral
- Measure word
- 个
Stroke order for 生日
生日 is written with 9 strokes (生: 5, 日: 4). The animation replays automatically.
What does 生日 mean?
生日 (shēngrì) means 'birthday' — literally 'birth day,' built from 生 ('to be born') + 日 ('day').
The standard well-wishing phrase is 生日快乐 (shēngrì kuàilè, 'happy birthday'), which goes on cards, cakes, and songs (the Chinese version of 'Happy Birthday to You' uses this line). To state the date, use 我的生日是X月X日: my birthday is May 16. Two cultural notes for English speakers: many older Chinese people celebrate their lunar calendar birthday (农历生日) instead of, or alongside, the solar one; and a person's first birthday (一岁生日) is traditionally a bigger family event than later ones.
Don't confuse 生日 with the verb 出生 (chūshēng, 'to be born') — 生日 is the noun 'birthday,' not 'birth.' Birthdays are counted with 个: 这是我的第三十个生日 ('this is my 30th birthday').
Character by character
Memory hook: 生 (born) + 日 (day) = the day you were born — birthday.
Example sentences
祝你生日快乐！
Zhù nǐ shēngrì kuàilè!
Happy birthday to you!
spoken
我的生日是十月二十号。
Wǒ de shēngrì shì shí yuè èrshí hào.
My birthday is October 20th.
neutral
今天是妈妈的生日。
Jīntiān shì māma de shēngrì.
Today is Mom's birthday.
spoken
周末我们要给他过生日。
Zhōumò wǒmen yào gěi tā guò shēngrì.
This weekend we're going to celebrate his birthday.
spoken
Common phrases with 生日
Don't confuse 生日 with
出生 is the verb 'to be born' — 我1990年出生 ('I was born in 1990'). 生日 is the noun 'birthday' — the day you celebrate each year.
生 alone has many uses (be born, raw, student). In 生日 it carries the 'be born' meaning. Don't read it as 'raw day.'
日子 means 'days / life / dates' in general (这日子真好 'these days are great'). 生日 is specifically 'birthday.' Same 日 character, very different meanings.
FAQ
Acquire it by listening
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