节日快乐
jiérì kuàilè
In Mandarin, happy holidays is said as 节日快乐 (jiérì kuàilè).
节日快乐 is a general greeting used for any holiday or festival. It is not specific to a single event like Christmas or New Year.
Meaning: holiday greeting (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 节日 (jiérì), meaning 'festival' or 'holiday' and 快乐 (kuàilè), meaning 'happy'.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some parts of China, people use 过年好 or 过年快乐 to wish someone a happy new year.
How does it change in a sentence?
In Mandarin, the adjective 'happy' (快乐) follows the noun 'holiday' (节日) to form the greeting.
How do you pronounce it?
jiérì kuàilè
When do people say it?
Specific festivals have their own greetings, such as 元宵节快乐 (yuán xiāo jié kuài lè) for the Lantern Festival.
Did you know?
- The word 节 (jié) in 节日 originally referred to the 'nodes' or 'joints' of bamboo, which evolved to mean the 'turning points' of the solar year.
- During the Spring Festival, you might hear the phrase 恭喜发财 (gōngxǐ fācái) instead of a general holiday greeting, which specifically wishes the recipient to 'become wealthy'.
- In China, greeting someone with 节日快乐 is often accompanied by giving 'red envelopes' (红包) containing money to children and elders.
Examples in context
- 祝大家节日快乐。Zhù dàjiā jiérì kuàilè.I wish everyone happy holidays.
- 提前祝你节日快乐。Tíqián zhù nǐ jiérì kuàilè.I wish you happy holidays in advance.
Example conversation
晓雯 and 志强 are exchanging greetings during a public holiday.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen志强，节日快乐！Zhìqiáng, jiérì kuàilè!Zhiqiang, happy holidays!
- 志强 Zhiqiang谢谢晓雯，也祝你节日快乐。Xièxiè Xiǎowén, yě zhù nǐ jiérì kuàilè.Thanks Xiaowen, happy holidays to you too.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen你打算怎么过节？Nǐ dǎsuàn zěnme guòjié?How do you plan to spend the holiday?
- 志强 Zhiqiang我想回家陪家人。Wǒ xiǎng huíjiā péi jiārén.I want to go home to be with my family.
