feliz cumpleaños primo
/feliθ kumpleaɲos pɾimo/from spelling rules
To say "happy birthday cousin" in Spanish, use feliz cumpleaños primo.
This phrase is used to wish a male cousin a happy birthday.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of feliz (happy), cumpleaños (birthday) and primo (male cousin).
Which one should you use?
Use feliz cumpleaños prima if the cousin is female.
How does it change in a sentence?
In written Spanish, it is standard to use exclamation marks at both the beginning and the end of the greeting, such as ¡Feliz cumpleaños, primo!
How do you pronounce it?
/feliθ kumpleaɲos pɾimo/
Did you know?
- In some Spanish-speaking countries, the custom of 'la mordida' occurs during the birthday celebration, where guests encourage the birthday person to take a bite of the cake without using their hands.
- While 'primo' means 'cousin', in some Spanish-speaking slang, calling someone 'primo' can be a way to address a close friend, similar to 'mate' or 'dude' in English.
- The word cumpleaños is a compound that literally means 'year-fulfiller' because it combines the verb for 'to fulfill' and the word for 'years'.
Example conversation
Sofía calls her cousin Alejandro on the phone.
- Sofía¡Hola Alejandro! Feliz cumpleaños primo.Hello Alejandro! Happy birthday cousin.
- AlejandroMuchas gracias, Sofía.Thank you very much, Sofía.
- Sofía¡Que tengas un día maravilloso!I hope you have a wonderful day!
- AlejandroGracias, te quiero mucho.Thanks, I love you a lot.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cumpleaños, feliz, primo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
