Numbers plus 月
January is 一月 (one-month), February is 二月 (two-month), and so on up to 十二月 for December. The numbers are the ordinary ones from Chinese numbers: 一 ★, 二 ★, 三 ★ through 十 ★.
Keep 一 as yī here: 一月 is yīyuè, because it names the first month rather than counting one of something.
Careful with 一个月. Add the measure word 个 and the meaning changes: 一月 is January, but 一个月 (yí ge yuè) is "one month" as a length of time. 三月 is March; 三个月 is three months.
How Chinese dates are ordered
Chinese dates go from the biggest unit to the smallest: year, month, day.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 2025年5月20日 | èr líng èr wǔ nián wǔyuè èrshí rì | May 20, 2025 |
| 十月一日 | shíyuè yī rì | October 1 |
| 今年 | jīnnián | this year |
Years are read digit by digit: 2025 is 二零二五年. The word for year, 年 ★, follows the number.
号 or 日 for the day
Written dates use 日 (rì, day): 五月二十日. In speech, most people say 号 (hào, number) instead: 五月二十号. Both mean the 20th. To ask the date, say 今天几号？ (jīntiān jǐ hào?, what’s the date today?); 今天 ★ and 几 ★ are course words.
Last month, this month, next month
Chinese uses 上 ★ (up, before) and 下 ★ (down, after) for time, with the measure word 个:
- 上个月 (shàng ge yuè): last month
- 这个月 (zhège yuè): this month
- 下个月 (xià ge yuè): next month
The same pattern works for weeks; see days of the week in Chinese.
The lunar calendar
Everyday life in China and Taiwan runs on the same calendar as the rest of the world, but traditional festivals follow the lunar calendar. The first lunar month is called 正月 (zhēngyuè), and Chinese New Year falls on its first day, in late January or February. For birthday wishes, see happy birthday in Chinese.
Common mistakes
- Putting the day first. "20 May" or "May 20" becomes 五月二十号, month before day, always.
- Mixing up 三月 and 三个月. March versus three months.
- Reading the year as a number. 2025年 is èr líng èr wǔ nián, not "two thousand twenty-five".