Happy Birthday in French
This free audio lesson will teach you the 2 common ways to say Happy Birthday in French, (Joyeux anniversaire ! and Bon anniversaire !) as well as how to sing Happy Birthday in French! And discover a few other words and expressions that are used in the context of a French birthday party.
You can test your pronunciation with our free voice recognition software! Listen to the audio and follow the French pronunciation. It's a good idea to practice each French expression aloud, and before long you'll be comfortable with pronouncing these French words and phrases!
Resources for further reading:
How to sing Happy Birthday in French!
The Happy birthday song in French
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How to say Happy birthday in French
Unsurprisingly, French people love to have parties and to celebrate, and in particular they appreciate anniversaries and gifts!
To wish someone a happy birthday, French people will use the expression joyeux anniversaire or bon anniversaire.
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Joyeux anniversaire !
Happy birthday!
Bon anniversaire !
Happy birthday! (Literally; A good birthday!)
Un anniversaire
A birthday
Joyeux is happy, whereas bon translates simply to good.
Since bon is followed with a vowel, it is pronounced like bonne, the feminine form of the adjective. This pronunciation can be a little confusing, and children or inattentive people will sometimes mistakenly write bonne anniversaire.
French people will of course offer presents, and eat a cake after the candles have been blown by the aging person. A lot of photos generally immortalize the event,and people sing "Joyeux anniversaire !" to the tune of "Happy birthday to you!". Some champagne is often poured in flutes!
More about having a Happy birthday in French
Meilleurs vœux pour votre anniversaire !
Best wishes on your birthday
Le cadeau
The present
La bougie
The candle
Du Champagne
Some champagne
Une coupe de champagne
A flute of champagne
Le gâteau
The cake
Le gâteau au chocolat
The chocolate cake
That’s it for today’s French lesson on saying Happy Birthday in French. I hope you enjoyed it, that you learned new expressions and improved your pronunciation!
From here why not do a lesson on describing your family in French?
À bientôt !
Marie-Claire Rivière and the Rocket French Team
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