celebrate an anniversary
/ˈselɪbreɪt ən ˌænɪˈvɜːrsəri/
Meaning
To mark or observe the yearly return of a significant date, such as a wedding, the founding of a company, or a historical event, with festive activities. It is a warm, positive collocation used in both personal and professional contexts.
Examples
-
My grandparents are going to celebrate their golden anniversary next month.
My grandparents are going to celebrate their golden anniversary next month.
-
We decided to celebrate our anniversary by booking a weekend getaway.
We decided to celebrate our anniversary by booking a weekend getaway.
-
The company will celebrate its tenth anniversary with a gala dinner.
The company will celebrate its tenth anniversary with a gala dinner.
-
How do you plan to celebrate your anniversary this year?
How do you plan to celebrate your anniversary this year?
-
They celebrated their anniversary at the same restaurant where they had their first date.
They celebrated their anniversary at the same restaurant where they had their first date.
Common Mistakes
-
✗ They celebrated their birthday of marriage yesterday.
✓ They celebrated their wedding anniversary yesterday.
'Birthday' is only used for the day a person was born. For recurring calendar milestones of events (like weddings), use 'anniversary'.
-
✗ We are going to congratulate our anniversary tonight.
✓ We are going to celebrate our anniversary tonight.
You 'congratulate' people, but you 'celebrate' events or milestones.
Related Expressions
Practice
-
It is traditional to buy paper gifts when you ___ for the first time.
💡 Mark the yearly milestone of an event (3 words)
Show answer
celebrate an anniversary
-
The couple wanted to ___ in a quiet, intimate way.
💡 Commemorate a yearly milestone (3 words)
Show answer
celebrate an anniversary