birthday

American  

[burth-day] / ˈbɜrθˌdeɪ /

noun

• birthdays
  plural

1. the anniversary of a birth.

2. the day of a person's birth.

3. a day marking or commemorating the origin, founding, or beginning of something.

4. the festivities or celebration marking such a day or anniversary.

---

birthday British  

/ ˈbɜːθˌdeɪ /

noun

1. 1. an anniversary of the day of one's birth

   2. ( as modifier )

      birthday present

2. the day on which a person was born

3. any anniversary

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• birthdays
  plural

---

Etymology

Origin of birthday

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at birth, day

---

Explanation

Your birthday is the day of your birth! It’s the yearly anniversary that marks the day you were born. Not everyone celebrates, but a birthday is a good excuse for a party and cake. You can use birthday both to refer to the specific day of a baby's birth, and the annual marking of that day throughout the years that follow. Sometimes people talk about the birthday of a country, group, or even a building: "It's the art museum's fiftieth birthday next year." The Old English byrddæg originally referred to the celebration of a king or saint's birth, but over the years it was extended to include everyone.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

birthday birthdays

The restaurant occupied a sprawling shopping center alongside an Olive Garden, a Cabela’s and a Costco, making it something of a regional mecca for homecoming dinners, birthday parties and Little League victories.

From Salon ● Oct. 17, 2026

From there I headed south for a friend’s planned birthday party on the sand in Newport Beach, but city streets had been flooded and beaches were closed.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

In 2008, John Swansburg argued that we should ditch this particular festivity: “Seems like a nice idea, the birthday dinner. It is not. It is a tedious, wretched affair.”

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

Among them was Taylor, who was visiting with her partner and their two children, aged one and three, for the youngest child's birthday.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

I never talked about my birthday, but I wanted the spinning wheel.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff

Bouquets of banknotes or cakes decorated with currency are often ordered as gifts for weddings, birthdays, graduations and other celebrations.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

Then I had one of those milestone birthdays earlier this year that makes you think about life, death and, hopefully, retirement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026

Since then, I’ve baked the cake for countless weddings, birthdays and gender reveals.

From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026

While some teenagers may mark their 18th birthdays by buying a lottery ticket or getting a first tattoo, Deon Radcliff Jr. had different priorities.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

They kept their birthdays as secret as possible.

From "Wringer" by Jerry Spinelli

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---