Meaning of 番茄
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- tomato
How to use 番茄
番茄 is the everyday word for tomato in recipes, menus and shops, especially in southern China and Taiwan. In the north many people say 西红柿 (xīhóngshì) for the same thing. Example: 我想吃番茄炒蛋。(Wǒ xiǎng chī fānqié chǎo dàn.) I want to eat stir-fried tomato and egg.
番 (fān) was used for things from foreign lands, and 茄 (qié) is the eggplant, so 番茄 is the foreign eggplant. Picture a round red eggplant brought over from abroad.
Common mistake: Learners often read 茄 in 雪茄 (xuějiā, cigar) and then say fānjiā, but in 番茄 it is qié with a second tone. Also do not confuse 番 (fān) with 翻 (fān, to turn over), which adds 羽 on the right.
番茄 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
番 fān · foreign · 12 strokes
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茄 jiā · eggplant · 8 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 番茄.
Questions about 番茄
What does 番茄 mean?
番茄 (fānqié) means "tomato" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 番茄?
番茄 is made of 2 characters: 番 (12 strokes), 茄 (8 strokes). That is 20 strokes in total.
Is 番茄 an HSK word?
Yes. 番茄 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 番茄 and 西红柿?
They mean the same thing, tomato. 西红柿 (xīhóngshì) is more common in northern Mandarin speech, while 番茄 is common in the south, in Taiwan and in food names like 番茄酱 (fānqiéjiàng).
How do I say ketchup or tomato sauce?
Use 番茄酱 (fānqiéjiàng). Adding 酱 (jiàng, sauce or paste) to 番茄 gives the word for ketchup.