牛肉
niúròu
The English word "beef" is translated into Chinese as 牛肉 (niúròu).
Meaning: meat (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
niúròu
Did you know?
- The term 牛 (ox) is also used in slang to describe someone who is 'awesome' or 'extraordinary', a nuance that does not exist in the English word 'beef'.
- In many Chinese-speaking regions, if you simply ask for 肉 without specifying the animal, a butcher might default to pork rather than beef.
- The character for 'cow' 牛 is a pictograph that originally looked like a horned ox viewed from above.
Examples in context
- 牛肉通常比豬肉貴。Beef is usually more expensive than pork.This sentence is useful for comparing the price of 牛肉 to pork.Tatoeba #13543760 by LeviHighway, translation #9419040 by CK
- 比起羊肉我更喜欢牛肉。I like beef more than lamb.This sentence is useful for expressing a preference for 牛肉 over lamb.Tatoeba #9007593 by jacintoo, translation #9009377 by pandaaa217
- 兩名女子揮舞著巨大的鍋鏟，不停地翻炒著盛滿咖哩醬汁的牛肉絲。Two women wielding giant spatulas continuously stir a brimming wok of shredded beef simmering in curry sauce.This sentence is useful for describing the preparation of shredded 牛肉 in a curry sauce.Tatoeba #13552269 by LeviHighway, translation #11585864 by Cangarejo
- 我今天晚上想吃牛肉。I want to eat beef tonight.
- 今天晚上我们要炒牛肉块吃。We are going to stir-fry beef chunks tonight.
- 12 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A couple is deciding what to cook for dinner at home.
- 俊杰 Junjie你想吃牛肉嗎？Nǐ xiǎng chī niúròu ma?Do you want to eat beef?
- 晓雯 Xiaowen好啊，我想吃牛肉麵。Hǎo a, wǒ xiǎng chī niúròu miàn.Sure, I want to eat beef noodles.
- 俊杰 Junjie那我們去超市買牛肉吧。Nà wǒmen qù chāoshì mǎi niúròu ba.Then let's go to the supermarket to buy beef.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen沒問題，走吧。Méi wèntí, zǒu ba.No problem, let's go.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “beef” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
