A lot of English learners make this mistake, but it’s easy to fix. And changing this one thing will make your English sound more natural.
In English, we use congratulations when someone achieves something by their effort or when they reach a milestone in life:
“Congratulations on graduating high school!” “I heard you got a new job. Congratulations!” “You’re getting married? Congratulations!”
But we don’t say congratulations when it’s someone’s birthday.
Instead, say: “Happy Birthday!”“Happy birthday! I hope you have a great day.”“Happy birthday! Let’s celebrate this weekend.”
Remember: 👉 congratulations = achievement 👉 happy birthday = special day
Try writing your own birthday message in the comments.
Thanks for watching, and until next time, keep learning and keep it cool.
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I'm Michael, your human English teacher from New York and I’ve been teaching English learners around the world since 1994.
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