cumpleañero
/kumpleaˈɲeɾo/
The English phrase "birthday boy" is translated into Spanish as cumpleañero.
The term refers to a person, typically a male, who is celebrating their birthday.
Which one should you use?
While the English "birthday boy" often implies a child, cumpleañero can be used to refer to a male of any age.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, it is common to address the birthday boy as cumpleañero.
How does it change in a sentence?
The feminine form of the word is cumpleañera, used to mean "birthday girl".
How do you pronounce it?
/kumpleaˈɲeɾo/
Did you know?
- While cumpleañero describes the person, the act of celebrating is often linked to the mordida. This is a custom where guests cheer for the cumpleañero to take a bite of the cake, only for someone to push their face into the frosting.
- The word cumpleañero is built from the verb cumplir, meaning 'to fulfill' or 'to complete', and the noun año, meaning 'year'.
- The suffix -ero in cumpleañero is used in Spanish to denote a profession or a person associated with a specific object, such as panadero for a baker. This makes the 'birthday boy' grammatically similar to someone whose professional trade is their own birthday.
Examples in context
- ¡Feliz cumpleaños al cumpleañero!Happy birthday to the birthday boy!
- El cumpleañero está muy feliz hoy.The birthday boy is very happy today.
- ¿Dónde está el cumpleañero?Where is the birthday boy?
Example conversation
At a birthday party for Daniel.
- Elena¡Mira, ahí viene el cumpleañero!Look, there comes the birthday boy!
- Daniel¡Hola, Elena! Gracias por venir.Hi, Elena! Thanks for coming.
- Elena¡Felicidades, Daniel! ¿Te gusta tu regalo?Congratulations, Daniel! Do you like your gift?
- Daniel¡Me encanta! Muchas gracias.I love it! Thank you very much.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry cumpleañero, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
