岁 (years old)

• Pinyin: suì
• Formation: Subject + Number + 岁
• Hanzi breakdown: 岁 = 山 (mountain) + 夕 (evening)

Meaning

The measure word 岁 (suì) is used after a number to express age. Unlike English, Chinese does not need a verb like 'to be' — the subject is directly followed by the number and 岁.

In Chinese, stating someone's age follows the simple pattern Subject + Number + 岁, without needing a linking verb. For asking age, different expressions are used depending on the person's age: 你多大了? is standard for peers, 您多大年纪了? is polite for elderly people, and 你几岁了? is used for young children (under 10). Note that 岁 literally means 'year' in the context of age and cannot be replaced by 年 (which is used for calendar years). When stating approximate age, you can add 左右 (about) after 岁.

Examples

1. 我今年二十五岁。 I am twenty-five years old this year.
2. 她的女儿三岁了。 Her daughter is three years old.
3. 我爷爷今年八十岁了。 My grandfather is eighty years old this year.

Usage Guide

Context: spoken, written, everyday

Tone: descriptive

Do Say

• 我妈妈今年五十三岁。
• 他看起来只有三十岁左右。
• 这个孩子才四岁，已经会背很多古诗了。

Don't Say

• 我是二十岁。(Do not use 是 before the age — Chinese expresses age without a linking verb) → 我二十岁。
• 她有十八岁。(Do not use 有 to express age in Mandarin — this is a common mistake influenced by Romance languages) → 她十八岁。
• 我二十五年。(Use 岁 for age, not 年 — 年 refers to calendar years, not years of age) → 我二十五岁。

Origin & History

The character 岁 originally referred to the planet Jupiter, whose orbit around the sun was used as a yearly cycle in ancient Chinese astronomy. Over time, 岁 came to mean 'year' and specifically 'year of age.'

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal