HSK5 – Food, Animal and Plant

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Chinese Vocabulary · 中文词汇

Food, Animal and Plant Words in Chinese

饮食与动植物词汇 yǐnshí yǔ dòngzhíwù cíhuì

Breakfast is a whole culture in Chinese-speaking places. A classic Taiwanese breakfast is 烧饼 (shāobǐng) (a baked sesame flatbread), a 油条 (yóutiáo) (fried dough stick) and a cup of hot 豆浆 (dòujiāng) (soy milk), and many people dip the dough stick into the soy milk. In Beijing, the famous drink is 豆汁 (dòuzhī), made from fermented mung beans. It is sour and has a strong smell, so not everyone can accept the taste: some locals love it, while many visitors can’t finish a cup. Are you brave enough to try?

On the table

Food and Eating Words in Chinese

ChinesePinyinEnglishKoreanJapanese
点心diǎnxinSnack; dim sum; light pastry간식; 딤섬おやつ; 点心
豆腐dòufuTofu두부豆腐
豆浆dòujiāngSoy milk두유豆乳
番茄fānqiéTomato토마토トマト
海鲜hǎixiānSeafood해산물海鮮
黄瓜huángguāCucumber오이きゅうり
火锅huǒguōHot pot훠궈; 전골火鍋
蔬菜shūcàiVegetable채소野菜
甜品tiánpǐnDessert; sweets디저트デザート
土豆tǔdòuPotato감자ジャガイモ
油条yóutiáoFried dough stick유탸오(길쭉한 튀김빵)揚げパン(油条)
玉米yùmǐCorn옥수수とうもろこし

土豆 (tǔdòu) vs 马铃薯 (mǎlíngshǔ)

Mainland China says 土豆 (tǔdòu) for “potato.” In Taiwan, the usual word is 马铃薯 (mǎlíngshǔ), and 土豆 (tǔdòu) may be understood as peanut. If you want to be understood on both sides, 马铃薯 (mǎlíngshǔ) works everywhere.

点心 (diǎnxin) vs 甜品 (tiánpǐn)

点心 (diǎnxin) is a snack or a small pastry, and also the word for dim sum. 甜品 (tiánpǐn) is specifically sweet food, like desserts. In Taiwan, people more often say 甜点 (tiándiǎn) for dessert.

Putting it all together

Examples

我wǒ早餐zǎocān习惯xíguàn喝hē豆浆dòujiāng，再zài配pèi一根yì gēn油条yóutiáoFor breakfast I usually have soy milk with a fried dough stick.

冬天dōngtiān和hé朋友péngyou一起yìqǐ吃chī火锅huǒguō，放fàng很多hěn duō蔬菜shūcài、豆腐dòufu和hé海鲜hǎixiānIn winter, we eat hot pot with friends, with lots of vegetables, tofu and seafood.

Creatures and plants

Animal and Plant Words in Chinese

ChinesePinyinEnglishKoreanJapanese
虫子chóngziBug; insect (casual)벌레虫
大象dàxiàngElephant코끼리ゾウ
猴子hóuziMonkey원숭이サル
蝴蝶húdiéButterfly나비チョウ
昆虫kūnchóngInsect곤충昆虫
龙lóngDragon용竜
蛇shéSnake뱀ヘビ
兔子tùziRabbit토끼ウサギ
鸭子yāziDuck오리アヒル
种子zhǒngziSeed씨앗種
猪zhūPig돼지ブタ
竹子zhúziBamboo대나무竹

Animals in the Chinese zodiac

Five of the words in this list are also zodiac animals: 兔 (tù) (rabbit), 龙 (lóng) (dragon), 蛇 (shé) (snake), 猴 (hóu) (monkey) and 猪 (zhū) (pig). Asking 你属什么 (nǐ shǔ shénme)? (“What animal are you?”) is a common way to ask someone’s birth year.

Chinese Zodiac Finder

Select your birth date for full Lunar Zodiac analysis!

Lucky Numbers:
Lucky Colors:
Compatible Signs:
Personality Traits:
Annual Forecast:

The little 子 (zi)

Many everyday nouns end in 子 (zi), pronounced with a light tone, like 猴子 (hóuzi), 兔子 (tùzi), 鸭子 (yāzi), 竹子 (zhúzi) and 种子 (zhǒngzi). It is a common noun ending in Chinese, so just learn each word together with its 子 (zi).

Putting it all together

Examples

动物园dòngwùyuán里lǐ的de大象dàxiàng很hěn大dà，猴子hóuzi很hěn爱动ài dòng，兔子tùzi很hěn可爱kě’àiAt the zoo, the elephant is huge, the monkeys are lively, and the rabbits are cute.

一只yì zhī蝴蝶húdié飞过来fēi guòlái，停tíng在zài竹子zhúzi上shàngA butterfly flew over and landed on the bamboo.

Test yourself

Vocabulary Quiz

HSK5
Do you like it? 🙂