聖誕快樂 / 圣诞快乐
Shèngdàn kuàilè
聖誕快樂 / 圣诞快乐 (Shèngdàn kuàilè) is the Chinese way to say Merry Christmas. Wiktionary also lists 聖誕節快樂 / 圣诞节快乐 (Shèngdànjié kuàilè).
Meaning: good wishes at Christmas time (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 聖誕快樂 / 圣诞快乐 | Shèngdàn kuàilè |
| 聖誕節快樂 / 圣诞节快乐 | Shèngdànjié kuàilè |
This phrase is used to offer good wishes during the Christmas season.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 聖誕 (Shèngdàn, Christmas) and 快樂 (kuàilè, happy).
Which one should you use?
聖誕快樂 / 圣诞快乐 (Shèngdàn kuàilè) is a shortened version of 聖誕節快樂 / 圣诞节快乐 (Shèngdànjié kuàilè), which includes the character 節 (jié) meaning 'festival'.
Is it said differently in some regions?
The version using traditional characters, 聖誕快樂, is used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau. The version using simplified characters, 圣诞快乐, is used in Mainland China.
How does it change in a sentence?
In Chinese, the adjective 快樂 (kuàilè, happy) follows the noun it modifies (Christmas) to form a greeting.
How do you pronounce it?
Shèngdàn kuàilè
Did you know?
- In some parts of China, a tradition has emerged of eating an apple on Christmas Eve because the word for 'apple' 蘋果 (píngguǒ) sounds similar to the word for 'peace' 平安 (píng'ān).
- In Mainland China, Christmas is often celebrated as a romantic holiday for couples rather than a family religious event, similar to Valentine's Day.
- The character 誕 (dàn) in 'Shèngdàn' is the same character used to refer to the birth of a monarch or an emperor in historical Chinese texts.
Examples in context
- 亲爱的[Name]，祝您和家人圣诞快乐，新年快乐！Dear [Name], wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “merry Christmas” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
