Months in Chinese: Names, Pronunciation, and Examples

Key takeaways

• Chinese months follow a numbered system: 一月 (yīyuè: January, literally first month) through 十二月 (shíèryuè: December, literally twelfth month). Once you know numbers 1-12, you know all twelve months.
• The word for month is 月 (yuè), which also means moon. Knowing this makes the pattern memorable: Chinese months are literally numbered moons.
• To say a full date in Chinese, the order is year, month, day: 2026年7月7日 (2026 nián 7 yuè 7 rì: July 7, 2026).
• April (四月 sìyuè), November (十一月 shíyīyuè), and December (十二月 shíèryuè) follow the same numbered pattern as all other months and have no irregular forms.

Chinese months are among the most learner-friendly vocabulary sets in the language. English requires memorizing twelve unrelated words with irregular abbreviations. Chinese requires knowing numbers 1 through 12 and one additional word: 月 (yuè: month/moon). That is the entire system.

italki connects learners with Chinese teachers who can help you move from knowing the names to using them naturally in date-setting, scheduling, and daily conversation.

This guide covers the 12 months in Chinese with pinyin and tones, how to say full dates, how to ask and answer questions about the month, seasonal vocabulary, and key Chinese holidays organized by month. Particular attention is given to April, November, and December, which are among the most searched individual month terms.

The 12 months in Chinese: full table

Chinese	Pinyin	English	Tone breakdown
一月	yī yuè	January	First tone + fourth tone
二月	èr yuè	February	Fourth tone + fourth tone
三月	sān yuè	March	First tone + fourth tone
四月	sì yuè	April	Fourth tone + fourth tone
五月	wǔ yuè	May	Third tone + fourth tone
六月	liù yuè	June	Fourth tone + fourth tone
七月	qī yuè	July	First tone + fourth tone
八月	bā yuè	August	First tone + fourth tone
九月	jiǔ yuè	September	Third tone + fourth tone
十月	shí yuè	October	Second tone + fourth tone
十一月	shíyī yuè	November	Second-first-fourth tones
十二月	shíèr yuè	December	Second-fourth-fourth tones

月 (yuè) is consistently fourth tone. The tone of the number before it follows the standard number pronunciation:

• First tone: 一 (yī: 1), 三 (sān: 3), 七 (qī: 7), 八 (bā: 8)
• Second tone: 十 (shí: 10, the base for 10, 11, 12)
• Third tone: 五 (wǔ: 5), 九 (jiǔ: 9)
• Fourth tone: 二 (èr: 2), 四 (sì: 4), 六 (liù: 6)

Once you know the tones for Chinese numbers, the month system becomes predictable without separate memorization.

How to say dates in Chinese

Chinese dates follow the order: year, month, day. This is the opposite of the American format (month/day/year) and different from the European format (day/month/year).

Basic date structure:

Component	Chinese	Pinyin	Example
Year	年	nián	2026年 (2026 nián: year 2026)
Month	月	yuè	七月 (qī yuè: July)
Day (formal)	日	rì	七日 (qī rì: the 7th)
Day (informal)	号	hào	七号 (qī hào: the 7th)

Full date examples:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
2026年7月7日	2026 nián qī yuè qī rì	July 7, 2026 (formal)
7月7号	qī yuè qī hào	July 7th (everyday speech)
1999年12月31日	1999 nián shíèr yuè sānshíyī rì	December 31, 1999
四月一号	sì yuè yī hào	April 1st

In daily speech, 号 (hào) is more common than 日 (rì) for the day number. 日 appears in formal writing, official documents, and news. Both are correct and understood.

Dates often appear together with time expressions in Chinese when you schedule lessons, appointments, trips, or meetings.

Asking and answering questions about months

Asking what month it is:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
现在是几月?	xiànzài shì jǐ yuè	What month is it now?
今天是几号?	jīntiān shì jǐ hào	What is today’s date?
你的生日是几月几号?	nǐ de shēngrì shì jǐ yuè jǐ hào	What month and day is your birthday?

Answering:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
现在是七月。	xiànzài shì qī yuè	It is July now.
今天是七月七号。	jīntiān shì qī yuè qī hào	Today is July 7th.
我的生日是四月三号。	wǒ de shēngrì shì sì yuè sān hào	My birthday is April 3rd.

Useful month-related expressions:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
上个月	shàng gè yuè	last month
这个月	zhège yuè	this month
下个月	xià gè yuè	next month
月初	yuè chū	beginning of the month
月末 / 月底	yuè mò / yuè dǐ	end of the month
每个月	měi gè yuè	every month
几个月	jǐ gè yuè	how many months / a few months

A Chinese language tutor can practice scheduling dialogues with you using these expressions, helping you respond naturally when someone asks for a meeting date or appointment time.

April in Chinese: usage and examples

April: 四月 (sì yuè)

四 (sì) is fourth tone: the voice starts high and falls sharply, like expressing mild surprise. Paired with 月 (yuè, also fourth tone), the phrase is 四月 (sì yuè).

The common learner error with 四 (sì: four) is confusing it with 十 (shí: ten) because they can sound similar at speed. In context, 四月 (April) versus 十月 (October) are easy to distinguish, but isolated tone practice helps build clarity.

April usage examples:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
四月是春天。	sì yuè shì chūntiān	April is spring.
我四月去北京。	wǒ sì yuè qù Běijīng	I am going to Beijing in April.
清明节在四月。	Qīngmíngjié zài sì yuè	Qingming Festival is in April.
他四月份出生。	tā sì yuèfèn chūshēng	He was born in April.
四月多雨。	sì yuè duō yǔ	April has a lot of rain.

Note: 月份 (yuèfèn) is another way to say month with a slightly more measured feel. 四月份 is slightly more emphatic than 四月 but means the same thing in most contexts.

November and December in Chinese

November: 十一月 (shíyī yuè)

十一月 combines 十 (shí: ten, second tone), 一 (yī: one, first tone), and 月 (yuè: month, fourth tone). In fast speech, the tones flow as second-first-fourth.

Note that 十一月 (eleventh month/November) must be distinguished from 十一 (shíyī: eleven) used in other contexts. When talking about dates, the month marker 月 makes the meaning clear.

November usage examples:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
十一月天气变冷了。	shíyī yuè tiānqì biàn lěng le	The weather gets cold in November.
我们十一月见面吧。	wǒmen shíyī yuè jiànmiàn ba	Let us meet in November.
双十一是十一月十一号。	Shuāng shíyī shì shíyī yuè shíyī hào	Singles’ Day is November 11th.

双十一 (shuāng shíyī: Double Eleven/Singles’ Day) on November 11th is now one of the world’s largest shopping events, originating from China’s e-commerce culture.

December: 十二月 (shíèr yuè)

十二月 combines 十 (shí: ten, second tone), 二 (èr: two, fourth tone), and 月 (yuè: month, fourth tone). The sequence is second-fourth-fourth.

December usage examples:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
十二月是冬天。	shíèr yuè shì dōngtiān	December is winter.
圣诞节在十二月二十五号。	Shèngdànjié zài shíèr yuè èrshíwǔ hào	Christmas is on December 25th.
十二月底我们放假。	shíèr yuè dǐ wǒmen fàngjià	We have a holiday at the end of December.
元旦是十二月三十一号之后。	Yuándàn shì shíèr yuè sānshíyī hào zhīhòu	New Year’s Day comes after December 31st.

Seasonal vocabulary

Chinese seasons connect directly to month vocabulary in daily conversation.

Chinese	Pinyin	English	Months
春天 / 春季	chūntiān / chūnjì	spring	三月-五月 (March-May)
夏天 / 夏季	xiàtiān / xiàjì	summer	六月-八月 (June-August)
秋天 / 秋季	qiūtiān / qiūjì	autumn/fall	九月-十一月 (September-November)
冬天 / 冬季	dōngtiān / dōngjì	winter	十二月-二月 (December-February)

天 (tiān) in seasonal words is casual and conversational: 春天 (spring), 夏天 (summer). 季 (jì) is more formal: 春季 (spring season). Both forms appear in everyday language; the casual forms are more common in speech.

Seasonal phrases:

Chinese	Pinyin	English
现在是夏天。	xiànzài shì xiàtiān	It is summer now.
我最喜欢秋天。	wǒ zuì xǐhuān qiūtiān	I like autumn the most.
冬天很冷。	dōngtiān hěn lěng	Winter is very cold.
春天来了。	chūntiān lái le	Spring has arrived.

Major Chinese holidays by month

Month	Holiday	Chinese	Pinyin
January/February	Chinese New Year	春节	Chūnjié
January/February	Lantern Festival	元宵节	Yuánxiāojié
April	Qingming Festival (Tomb Sweeping)	清明节	Qīngmíngjié
May	Labor Day	劳动节	Láodòngjié
June	Dragon Boat Festival	端午节	Duānwǔjié
August/September	Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine’s)	七夕节	Qīxījié
September/October	Mid-Autumn Festival	中秋节	Zhōngqiūjié
October 1	National Day	国庆节	Guóqìngjié
November 11	Singles’ Day (shopping holiday)	双十一	Shuāng shíyī
December 25	Christmas (celebrated commercially)	圣诞节	Shèngdànjié

Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year based on the lunar calendar, typically between late January and mid-February. Most other traditional holidays are also lunar calendar-based and shift year to year.

Month vocabulary in practice

Knowing the twelve months and related vocabulary prepares you for a wide range of real conversations: booking appointments, discussing birthdays, planning trips, and talking about Chinese holidays. The next step is using them smoothly in real exchange.

Practice goal: tell a teacher your birthday (我的生日是X月X号), say what month you plan to visit China (我打算X月去中国), and describe what the weather is like in your area during one month (X月很冷/热). These three sentences put month vocabulary into natural use immediately.

Working with an online Chinese teacher on scheduling and date-setting conversations is one of the most direct ways to make month vocabulary automatic rather than something you pause to recall.

Chinese learning books can help you choose textbooks that reinforce date, number, and calendar vocabulary in a structured way.

Practice months in real conversations

Month vocabulary is one of the first things that comes up in any Chinese conversation about plans, schedules, birthdays, and travel. Knowing the terms is easy; using them without hesitation when a teacher or colleague asks 你几月来? (which month are you coming?) takes live practice.

A Chinese tutor can run scheduling conversations with you at full conversational speed, correct your tone pronunciation on numbers like 四 (sì) and 十 (shí), and push you to use the full date format fluently. italki has 30,000+ expert tutors, trusted by over 10 million learners worldwide, meaning you can find Chinese tutors who fit your schedule and language goals precisely. Book a trial lesson and practice your next three months of plans in Chinese.

FAQ

Does China still use the lunar calendar, and do the months have different names in it?

The Gregorian calendar is used for all official, business, and everyday purposes. The lunar calendar (农历, nónglì) is still used for traditional festivals: Chinese New Year, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Dragon Boat Festival are all set by lunar dates. The lunar months do not use the number-based names – they are referred to by their position in the lunar cycle rather than numbered months.

How do you say last month and next month in Chinese?

Last month is 上个月 (shàng gè yuè) and next month is 下个月 (xià gè yuè). This month is 这个月 (zhège yuè). These time expressions follow the same pattern as 上周 (last week), 下周 (next week), and 这周 (this week).

Why do some Chinese months sound harder to pronounce for English speakers?

The tone combinations in certain months create difficulty. 四月 (sì yuè: April) has two falling tones in a row, which feels monotonous to English ears. 十月 (shí yuè: October) pairs a rising tone with a falling one. Practicing the months aloud with audio rather than from text alone makes a significant difference because tone is a feature of sound, not spelling.