虚岁

虛歲
xūsuì
noun

Meanings

  1. 1 nominal age
  2. 2 age by the traditional Chinese count

Examples

HSK 1
Wǒ jīnnián xūsuì sānshí.
I'm thirty this year by the traditional count.
HSK 7-9
Àn xūsuì suàn, nǎinai jīnnián bāshí suì, àn zhōusuì suàn cái qīshíbā.
By the traditional count Grandma is eighty this year, but in full years she's only seventy-eight.

Tips

culture
In 虚岁 counting a baby is one year old at birth, and everyone gains a year at the Lunar New Year rather than on their birthday. So it runs one or two years ahead of 周岁, the age in full years used on documents: a baby born just before New Year turns two within days.

Stroke Order

虚 xū
岁 suì