Christmas in Chinese 圣诞节

Shèngdànjié

Christmas in Chinese is 圣诞节 (shèng dàn jié).

Also searched for as: merry christmas, santa, christmas tree.

Twelve days of it, if you're lucky. 15 words and phrases for Christmas in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.

Christmas in Chinese is 圣诞节 (Shèng dàn jié), literally 'the holy birth festival', and the greeting is simply 圣诞快乐 (shèng dàn kuài lè), Merry Christmas. In mainland China it is not a public holiday, yet streets fill with 彩灯 (cǎi dēng), lights, and shopping centres put up huge trees. A uniquely Chinese twist is the 平安果 (píng ān guǒ), an apple given on 平安夜 (píng ān yè), Christmas Eve, because 苹果 (píng guǒ) shares a sound with 平安 (píng ān), peace.

Usage tips

• In mainland China, Christmas is mainly a social and commercial occasion, popular with young people for dates, parties and shopping, while in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong it is a public holiday.
• Father Christmas is 圣诞老人 (Shèng dàn lǎo rén), 'old Christmas man', who comes down the 烟囱 (yān cōng), chimney, and fills the 圣诞袜 (shèng dàn wà), Christmas stocking.
• Presents take the measure word 份 (fèn), as in 一份礼物 (yī fèn lǐ wù); you 送礼物 (sòng lǐ wù), give presents, and 拆礼物 (chāi lǐ wù), unwrap them.

Common mistakes

• Saying 圣诞 with the wrong tones can turn it into 生蛋 (shēng dàn), to lay an egg, a well-known tone joke; make sure it is shèng dàn, with two fourth tones.
• Assuming Chinese friends have the day off: in mainland China 25 December is a normal working day, so don't expect them to be free, but do wish them 圣诞快乐.

Mini dialogue

1. A圣诞节你回家吗？Shèng dàn jié nǐ huí jiā ma?Are you going home for Christmas?
2. B回，我们家每年都吃火鸡。Huí, wǒ men jiā měi nián dōu chī huǒ jī.Yes, we have turkey every year.
3. A在中国圣诞节不放假，我平安夜还要上班。Zài Zhōng guó Shèng dàn jié bù fàng jià, wǒ píng ān yè hái yào shàng bān.In China there's no holiday at Christmas, so I'm working on Christmas Eve.
4. B太惨了！那我送你一个平安果吧。Tài cǎn le! Nà wǒ sòng nǐ yī gè píng ān guǒ ba.That's rough! I'll give you a peace apple, then.
5. A谢谢！你的圣诞礼物准备好了吗？Xiè xie! Nǐ de shèng dàn lǐ wù zhǔn bèi hǎo le ma?Thanks! Have you got your Christmas presents ready?
6. B还没呢。圣诞快乐，我先走了！Hái méi ne. Shèng dàn kuài lè, wǒ xiān zǒu le!Not yet. Merry Christmas, I'd better be off!

Example sentences

• 圣诞节你回家吗？Are you going home for Christmas?
• 平安夜我们一家人吃饭。We have a family dinner on Christmas Eve.
• 圣诞快乐！Merry Christmas!
• 我们一起装饰圣诞树吧。Let's decorate the tree together.
• 圣诞老人会从烟囱下来。Father Christmas comes down the chimney.
• 圣诞老人坐着驯鹿拉的雪橇。Santa rides a sleigh pulled by reindeer.
• 孩子们挂好了袜子。The children have hung up their stockings.
• 早上起来先拆礼物。First thing in the morning, open the presents.
• 英国人圣诞节吃火鸡。British people eat turkey at Christmas.
• 街上挂满了彩灯。The streets are full of fairy lights.
• 商场里一直放圣诞歌。The shopping centre plays carols non-stop.
• 下雪了，我们堆个雪人吧！It's snowing, let's build a snowman!
• 在中国，平安夜大家送苹果，叫平安果。In China people give apples on Christmas Eve, called "peace apples".
• 平安夜很多人去教堂。Lots of people go to church on Christmas Eve.
• 节礼日商店都打折。Shops have sales on Boxing Day.

Practise speaking

Ready to use these words? The Christmas speaking island has 8 everyday questions about Christmas to prepare your own answers to.

Related topics

• Winter holidays & skiing 滑雪度假
• Christmas dinner 圣诞大餐
• Canton Fair 广交会
• The Olympics 奥运会
• The World Cup 世界杯
• Football leagues 足球联赛
• Basketball leagues 篮球联赛
• UFC & MMA 综合格斗

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