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Meaning & use

anniversary

noun·Everyday

Last updated

UK/ˌænɪˈvɜːsəri/
US/ˌænəˈvɝːsəri/

Meanings

  1. nouncountable

    The day each year when you remember or celebrate something important that happened on that date earlier.

    Grammar: Usually with an ordinal number or of: the fiftieth anniversary of the bridge.

    Patterns

    • the anniversary of something
    • a wedding anniversary
    • mark the anniversary

    Today is the tenth anniversary of the school's opening.

    They went to Rome to celebrate their wedding anniversary.

    The town marked the anniversary of the flood with a quiet ceremony.

  2. nouncountable

    A celebration or event held on such a day.

    Grammar: Used for parties and events: the anniversary was held in the town hall.

    Patterns

    • hold an anniversary
    • an anniversary party
    • an anniversary dinner

    The company held an anniversary party for all employees.

    We have an anniversary dinner booked for Friday.

    The anniversary concert drew a huge crowd.

Word forms

pluralanniversaries

Common combinations

wedding anniversary
Their wedding anniversary falls in June.
golden anniversary
The couple celebrated their golden anniversary with family.
celebrate an anniversary
The shop celebrated its first anniversary with a sale.
mark the anniversary
A concert will mark the anniversary of the city's founding.
anniversary of the death
On the anniversary of the death, the family visits the grave.
anniversary gift
He chose a watch as an anniversary gift.

Synonyms and how they differ

jubilee
Jubilee is a special big anniversary, usually the fiftieth or later, and sounds ceremonial.
commemoration
Commemoration is the act of honoring a past event and is often solemn, whereas an anniversary is simply the date.
birthday
Birthday is the anniversary of a person's birth, but it is only used for births.
centenary
Centenary means exactly one hundred years from an event, which is narrower than anniversary.

Word family

annual adjective
happening every year
annually adverb
once every year
biannual adjective
happening twice a year
annals noun
yearly records of events

Commonly confused: anniversary or birthday? anniversary or annual?

anniversary vs birthday

A birthday celebrates a person's birth only, while an anniversary marks any event, such as a wedding or founding.

anniversary vs annual

Annual means once a year, but it is an adjective; an anniversary is a particular date.

Practice

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