英语中“牛”对应的单词有好几个，比如大家熟悉的cow, bull, ox, buffalo. “牛年”英语一般翻译为the year of the ox.
为什么呢？charlie shifflett这样解释：“westerners respect the ox for its strength and hardworking spirit. however, bulls are generally viewed negatively, thanks to their aggressive nature. cows are considered the “cutest of the three”. in fact, in the us, people often decorate their homes with pictures of cows. the animal is associated with the comfort and quiet of a country home.”

“西方人对牛ox是很敬重的，因为它的强健和勤劳！不过，bull这个词一般就有些否定的意义在里面，如“盛气凌人”，但也要“归功”于它们的“积极进取的”的个性。而奶牛cow被视为三个中最可爱的、最讨人喜欢的一个。事实上，在美国，人们常用奶牛图片来装饰屋子，她们总是和宁静舒适的乡村生活联系在一起。”
这里还要与大家分享两个单词：bully 和 coward。这两个单词都来自牛，一个来自公牛bull，一个来来自母牛cow. bully 做动词指“持强凌弱”、“欺负他人”的意思，作名词表示这样的人，很显然带有贬义。而coward表示“懦夫”、“胆小鬼”，派生词有cowardly 形容词“胆小的”；cowardice 名词“懦弱”。看来公牛bull 和母牛 cow 都有一定的贬义，所以牛年翻译为the year of the ox 就显得比较妥当了。

“我属牛, 你属什么？”英语怎么说？

i was born in the year of the ox, and how about you?

与“牛”相关的单词或表达方式：

bull公牛, cow母牛, 水牛 buffalo, bison 野牛,yak牦牛, calf 小牛, beef牛肉,veal小牛肉, steak牛排, cowboy牛仔,cowherd牛郎, bullfrog牛蛙, snail蜗牛, milk牛奶, dairy牛奶厂, bull fighting 斗牛, bulldog斗牛犬, brag吹牛, jeans牛仔裤, mad cow disease 疯牛病, psoriasis牛皮癣, a workhorse老黄牛（埋头苦干者), a bull market(股票等）牛市,  a big shot 牛人。。。