How do you say "anniversary" in Japanese?

記念日

kinenbi

Noun Kanji

In Japanese, "anniversary" is 記念日 (kinenbi).

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Pronunciation

Kinenbi splits evenly into ki-nen-bi, with a crisp nasal 'n' in the middle that shouldn't be dropped.

Writing and usage

記念日 is written using kanji. It's a noun, and this word is also taught inside the Noun Town language learning game, where it appears in interactive lessons alongside hundreds of other everyday words.

Example sentence

彼らは結婚10周年を祝いました。

karera ha kekkon 10 shuunen wo iwai mashita.

They celebrated their tenth anniversary.

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How to remember 記念日

Kinenbi sounds like 'key and bee' -- imagine unlocking a memory box with a key while a bee buzzes past on the anniversary.

Related words

Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.

Questions about 記念日

How do you pronounce 記念日?

Kinenbi splits evenly into ki-nen-bi, with a crisp nasal 'n' in the middle that shouldn't be dropped.

Is 記念日 formal or casual?

記念日 is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech. The level of formality comes from the sentence structure around it, not from the word itself.

How is 記念日 written in Japanese?

記念日 is written using kanji. Romanised, it reads as kinenbi.

Where can I practice Japanese words for free?

You can play free Japanese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, with no sign-up needed. Every word in the Japanese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.

"Anniversary" in other languages

Curated by Callan Ratcliffe

This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Japanese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.

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