There are many foreign words that have entered the Chinese language. These words are called “外来词/外来语 wàiláicí/wàiláiyǔ (loanwords),” which literally means “outside come words.” They are either transliterated, translated literally or even a mixture of both methods. In this article, we are going to take a look at some Chinese words which are transliterated and originally from English.

 

Before you read the following content, try to pronounce the Chinese before you check the English meaning.

 

 

Food:

 

中文

拼音

英文

pài

Pie

布丁

bù dīng

Pudding

沙拉

shā lā

Salad

巧克力

qiǎo kè lì

Chocolate

起司/芝士

qǐ sī /zhī shì

Cheese

吐司

tǔ sī

Toast

汉堡/汉堡包

hàn bǎo/ hàn bǎo bāo

Hamburger

咖喱

gā lí

Curry

三明治

sān míng zhì

Sandwich

芒果

máng guǒ

Mango

柠檬

níng méng

 Lemon

 

 

Drinks:

 

咖啡

kā fēi

Coffee

威士忌

wēi shì jì

Whisky

白兰地

bái lán dì

Brandy

百事

bǎi shì

Pepsi

可可

kě kě

Cocoa

可乐

kě lè

Coke

 

 

People:

 

模特

mó tè

Model

黑客

hēi kè

Hacker

丁克

dīng kè

Dink

 

 

Clothes:

 

比基尼

bǐ jī ní

Bikini

T恤

T xù

T-shirt

 

Dance:

 

华尔兹

huá ěr zī

Waltz

芭蕾

bā lěi

Ballet

 

Sports:

 

马拉松

mǎ lā sōng

Marathon

高尔夫

gāo ěr fū

Golf

 

Transportation:

 

吉普

jí pǔ

Jeep

巴士

bā shì

Bus

摩托/摩托车

mó tuō/mó tuō chē

Motorcycle

 

Music:

 

吉他

jí tā

Guitar

萨克斯风

sà kè sī fēng

Saxophone

麦克风

mài kè fēng

Microphone

 

Some other commons words:

 

迷你

mí nǐ

Mini

Cool

幽默

yōu mò

Humor; humorous

Xiù

Show; to show

 

Military:

 

雷达

léi dá

Radar

坦克

tǎn kè

Tank

声纳

shēng nà

Sonar

 

Medicine:

 

淋巴

lín bā

Lymph

休克

xiū kè

Shock

阿司匹林

ā sī pǐ lín

Aspirin

维他命

wéi tā mìng

Vitamin

荷尔蒙

hé ěr méng

Hormone

基因

jī yīn

Gene

 

Chemistry:

 

尼古丁

ní gǔ dīng

Nicotine

可卡因

kě kǎ yīn

Cocaine

咖啡因

kā fēi yīn

Caffeine

海洛因

hǎi luò yīn

Heroin

吗啡

mǎ fēi

Morphine

 

Measure words:

 

Meter

Dozen

tīng

Tin

dūn

Ton

 

 

Can you guess how to say the following words or phrases in Chinese?:

 

Lemon water

Mango pie

Mango pudding

Cheeseburger

Pepsi coke

A dozen of beers

Mini T-shirt

 

Loanwords (外来词/外来语,wàiláicí/wàiláiyǔ) are not only interesting but also easy to learn. What other loanwords you find useful and interesting? Please comment below and share with us!

 

Hero image by Riki Ramdani on Unsplash.