Word
Tillykke med fødselsdagen.
Meaning
Congratulations on your birthday.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
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Questions & Answers about Tillykke med fødselsdagen.
Is Tillykke med fødselsdagen the normal Danish way to say Happy birthday?
Yes. It is the standard, natural phrase Danes use to congratulate someone on their birthday.
A few very common versions are:
- Tillykke med fødselsdagen = the full, standard phrase
- Tillykke! = shorter, very common in speech and messages
- Hjertelig tillykke = warmer, a bit more heartfelt
- Stort tillykke = big congratulations, also common in messages
So if you learn just one birthday phrase, Tillykke med fødselsdagen is a very good choice.
Why does Danish use med here?
Because Danish says it as congratulations with/on the birthday, not literally happy birthday.
The phrase pattern is:
- Tillykke med ... = congratulations on/with ...
You can use this with many occasions:
- Tillykke med jobbet = Congratulations on the job
- Tillykke med eksamen = Congratulations on the exam
- Tillykke med brylluppet = Congratulations on the wedding
So med is the normal preposition after tillykke.
Why is it fødselsdagen and not just fødselsdag?