When is your birthday?
A very common alternative, literally meaning 'When do you complete years?'. It's used just as frequently as the main phrase.
A more formal way to ask 'What is your date of birth?'. Best for official contexts like filling out forms or at a doctor's office.
A: When is your birthday? B: It's on July 20th.
For the surprise party, I need to know, when is your birthday?
Excuse me, ma'am, what is your date of birth for the form?
My birthday is in October. And yours? When is your birthday?
The phrase '¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?' is understood and used universally across the Spanish-speaking world. It's the most standard and recognized form.
While '¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?' is common, you will frequently hear the 'vos' form for the alternative: '¿Cuándo cumplís años?' instead of '¿Cuándo cumples años?' due to the use of 'voseo'.
The phrases are the same, but if you're asking a group of friends, you would use the 'vosotros' form: '¿Cuándo es vuestro cumpleaños?'.
Both '¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?' and '¿Cuándo cumples años?' are extremely common and used interchangeably in everyday, informal conversation.
Using 'cómo' instead of 'cuándo'. A common beginner mistake is to ask '¿Cómo es tu cumpleaños?', which means 'What is your birthday like?'. The correct question word for 'when' is 'cuándo'.
Saying the date in the wrong order. In Spanish, the structure is always 'el [day] de [month]'. For example, say 'Mi cumpleaños es el cinco de mayo', not '*Mi cumpleaños es mayo cinco'.
Being redundant by saying 'cumpleaños años'. The word 'cumpleaños' is a compound of 'cumplir' (to complete) and 'años' (years). Adding another 'años' is like saying 'birthday years'.
Confusing 'cumpleaños' (birthday) with 'nacimiento' (birth). Asking '¿Cuándo es tu nacimiento?' sounds very literal and unnatural. Use '¿Cuándo es tu cumpleaños?' or the more formal '¿Cuál es tu fecha de nacimiento?'.
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