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Word file #013Cooling offNumber slang

What does 520 mean?

五二零wǔ èr líng

Say itfive-TWEN-teenumber used as a phrase (also a noun for the date 20 May)

Character by character
  1. 五wǔfive, for 我 “I”
  2. 二èrtwo, for 爱 “love”
  3. 零língzero, for 你 “you”

Chinese number slang for “I love you,” and the name of 20 May, an unofficial Valentine’s Day in China.

Written by the Second Language TeamWritten

520 is a number that Chinese speakers use to mean “I love you.” When you read it aloud in Mandarin, five-two-zero sounds close to 我爱你, the words for “I love you” [1]. People text it as a quick, easy “I love you.” It also names a date: 20 May (5/20). That day is now an unofficial Valentine’s Day in China, called Internet Valentine’s Day (网络情人节). Couples send gifts, shops hold sales, and many young couples register their marriage on that day [2]. English speakers mostly meet 520 in news about that day, not in their own texts.

In English, people usually say the date as five-TWEN-tee. In Mandarin, the three digits are read one by one: 五二零 wǔ èr líng, roughly “woo ar ling.” Wǔ has a dipping tone, èr a falling tone, and líng a rising tone. 我爱你 wǒ ài nǐ sounds roughly like “waw eye nee,” so the two are close but not the same. The digits look the same in simplified and traditional Chinese, but the phrase behind them is 我爱你 in simplified and 我愛你 in traditional. 520 is casual, sweet, and never rude. It is romantic, though, so keep it for people you actually love.

Word stats

Known in English
Most English speakers have never seen it. People who follow Chinese social media, brands, or dramas often have.
Said in China today
Chinese speakers text it all year in the same sense, and every May it is everywhere.
Polite
Sweet and never rude. But it means “I love you,” so maybe don’t send it to your landlord.
Freshness
Searches jump every May, but fewer people look it up than last year.

Spotted in the wild

Group chat · 20 May
  1. Priyamy boyfriend just sent me a wechat red packet for 5.20 yuan
  2. You5.20?? that’s like 70 cents
  3. Priyait’s may 20. 520 = i love you in chinese number slang
  4. Youromantic AND budget friendly

What it means here: The amount is the message: 5.20 yuan on 20 May says “I love you.”

Work chat · marketing team
  1. Meilaunch date for the china store: may 20?
  2. Youwhy may 20 specifically
  3. Meiit’s 520, basically internet valentine’s day there. every brand runs a 520 sale
  4. Tomfine but please no heart-shaped spreadsheets

What it means here: Here 520 is the name of the 20 May holiday, a big day for gifts and shopping in China.

Text from Lin · late at night
  1. Lin520
  2. Youis that a bus number?
  3. Linsay it in chinese. wǔ èr líng. now say 我爱你 fast
  4. Youoh. OH. 521 😳

What it means here: Lin means “I love you”: wǔ èr líng sounds close to 我爱你 wǒ ài nǐ, and answering 521 says it back.

How to use it

  • send someone (a) 520He sent me a 520 right before midnight.
  • on 520 (the date)Lots of couples in China register their marriage on 520.
  • a 520 red packetHer grandma sent a 5.20 yuan red packet, just for the joke.
  • a 520 sale / 520 campaignThe flower app is running a 520 sale all week.
  • 5201314 (“I love you for a lifetime”)She signed the card 5201314, because 520 alone wasn’t dramatic enough.

Don’t say it like this

  • Sounds off520 is pronounced wǒ ài nǐ.

    Say this520 is said wǔ èr líng, which sounds close to wǒ ài nǐ.

    It is a near match, not the same sound. The joke works because the two are close.

  • Sounds offReading it as “five hundred twenty,” or 五百二十 wǔbǎi èrshí in Chinese.

    Say thisReading the digits one by one: wǔ èr líng.

    As a full number, the sound changes and the hidden “I love you” disappears.

  • Sounds off20 May is the Chinese Valentine’s Day.

    Say this20 May is an unofficial “Internet Valentine’s Day”; the traditional Chinese Valentine’s Day is Qixi.

    520 is a new internet holiday. Qixi is the old festival, and it follows the lunar calendar.

  • Sounds offTexting 520 to your manager to say thanks for the help.

    Say thisTexting “thanks so much!” or 谢谢 xièxie.

    520 means “I love you.” It is fine for partners, family, and close friends, but strange at work.

520 or not?

Is each of these 520? Pick an answer to find out.

  1. Your partner texts you “520” on an ordinary evening.

  2. A friend leaves the group chat with “88.”

  3. A couple picks 20 May for their marriage registration because of how the date sounds.

  4. A couple celebrates the folk story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.

The 520 family

  • 521The answer to 520, read as “I’m willing” or “I love you”; 21 May is the day to reply.520 asks the question. 521 saves everyone from an awkward silence.
  • 5201314“I love you for a lifetime,” because 1314 sounds close to 一生一世 yīshēng yīshì.520 with a long-term plan attached.
  • 七夕 QixiThe traditional Chinese Valentine’s Day, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.Qixi is the old classic. 520 is the version that lives on your phone.

Where it came from

  1. 1998According to Baidu Baike, Taiwanese singer Fan Xiaoxuan (Mavis Fan, 范晓萱) used 520 to mean “I love you” in her song 《数字恋爱》 “Numeral Love,” which made the code popular [3].
  2. 2005Baidu Baike says an internet song by Wu Yulong (吴玉龙), 《网络情人》 (“Internet Lover”), spread the link between 520 and love even further [3].
  3. 2010Baidu Baike says events that netizens organized on 20 May 2010 started “Internet Valentine’s Day” (网络情人节) [3].
  4. TodayPeople confess on 20 May, answer on 21 May, and fill marriage registry offices. Shops run 520 sales, and the day now covers love for family and teachers too.

Is 520 the Chinese Valentine’s Day?

Not quite. 520 is one of several days for love in China, and it is the newest one. The traditional Chinese Valentine’s Day is 七夕 Qixi, which comes from an old folk story and follows the lunar calendar.

DayDateWhat it is
52020 MayInternet Valentine’s Day: the day to say “I love you”
52121 MayThe day to answer. 521 can be read as “I’m willing” or “I love you” [3]
七夕 Qixi7th day of the 7th lunar month (July or August)The traditional Chinese Valentine’s Day
情人节 qíngrén jié14 FebruaryWestern Valentine’s Day, also popular in China

So a couple in China can celebrate love three times a year. Flower shops are not complaining.

Nobody is sure how 20 May became so big. The World of Chinese says no one knows exactly: some people credit a song by the Taiwanese singer Fan Xiaoxuan, and others see it as just another internet holiday, like the Double 11 (双十一) shopping day [1]. Chinese press says the day now also covers love for parents, children, and teachers, and shops use it for marketing.

520 belongs to a larger family of number codes that work by sound:

  • 1314 (yī sān yī sì) sounds close to 一生一世 yīshēng yīshì, “for a whole lifetime.” So 5201314 means “I love you for a lifetime.”
  • 88 (bā bā) means “bye-bye.”
  • 666 (liù liù liù) means “awesome” or “nice skills.”
  • 233 means “LOL.”

The meaning in English is the same as in Chinese. The difference is how often people use it. Chinese speakers text 520 to each other. English speakers mostly use the name of the 20 May holiday.

Sources

  1. Cheesy Chat-up Lines for Chinese LoversThe World of Chinese, May 2018
  2. Chinese University Streamlines Student Marriages, Sparks DebateSixth Tone
  3. 520档期Baidu Baike

More words to decode

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Go beyond the numbers

520 gets you halfway there. Second Language is a pixel-art RPG where you talk to characters, finish quests, and learn to say 我爱你 out loud. The intro course is free to play.

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