明年
míngnián
In Chinese, "next year" is 明年 (míngnián).
明年 is used as a noun to refer to the year following the present year, and it can also function as an adverb meaning "the year after this one".
Meaning: the year after the present year (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word 明年 is composed of the characters 明, which can mean bright or next and 年, meaning year.
Which one should you use?
While 明年 refers specifically to the calendar year following the current one, the related form 來年 is often used in more literary or poetic contexts to mean "the coming year".
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
In Chinese, time adverbs like 明年 are typically placed either at the very beginning of the sentence or immediately after the subject, but they are never placed at the end of the sentence.
How do you pronounce it?
míngnián
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers sometimes mistakenly try to use a word for "next" like 下 (xià) to create a phrase like "next year" (e.g., 下年), but 明年 is the standard and natural way to express this.
Did you know?
- In traditional Chinese culture, the 'year' 年 was originally a word for a mythical beast. This is why the phrase 过年 for celebrating the New Year literally means 'passing the beast'.
- While 明年 is standard, in Cantonese speakers often use 下年 to mean 'next year'. Using 明年 in a casual Hong Kong conversation can sometimes sound overly formal.
- Chinese speakers often use the word for 'bright' 明 to refer to the future in other time phrases, such as 明天 for 'tomorrow' and 明后天 for 'the day after tomorrow'.
Examples in context
- 我明年十七歲。I'll be seventeen next year.This sentence is useful for expressing age in the future using 明年.Tatoeba #13110005 by LeviHighway, translation #325124 by CK
- 明年你会是几岁？How old will you be next year?This sentence is useful for asking about age in the future using 明年.Tatoeba #1878273 by sadhen, translation #17630 by Swift
- 我想明年去法国。I plan to go to France next year.This sentence is useful for expressing future plans using 明年.Tatoeba #8592710 by easononizuka, translation #663914 by bluepie88
- 44 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends are discussing their travel plans.
- 俊杰 Junjie你明年想去哪儿旅游？Nǐ míngnián xiǎng qù nǎ'er lǚyóu?Where do you want to travel next year?
- 雨婷 Yuting我明年打算去日本。Wǒ míngnián dǎsuàn qù Rìběn.I plan to go to Japan next year.
- 俊杰 Junjie那我也想明年去那里。Nà wǒ yě xiǎng míngnián qù nàlǐ.Then I also want to go there next year.
- 雨婷 Yuting我们可以明年一起去！Wǒmen kěyǐ míngnián yīqǐ qù!We can go together next year!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “next year” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
