How to Say "Bubble Tea" in Chinese

珍珠奶茶

zhēnzhū nǎichá

In Chinese, bubble tea is 珍珠奶茶 (zhēnzhū nǎichá). Wiktionary also lists 珍奶 (zhēnnǎi).

Meaning: milk tea with tapioca balls (noun)

Ways to say it

“bubble tea” in Chinese
Chinese	Romanization (Wiktionary)
珍珠奶茶	zhēnzhū nǎichá
珍奶	zhēnnǎi

The term refers to milk tea containing tapioca balls.

珍珠奶茶 can be broken down into 珍珠, which means pearl (referring to the tapioca balls) and 奶茶, which means milk tea.

珍珠奶茶 is the full, formal name for the drink, whereas 珍奶 is a shortened, colloquial version.

珍珠奶茶 is the full name, while 珍奶 is an informal abbreviation used commonly among young people and in casual conversation.

zhēnzhū nǎichá

If you want to specify the texture of the 'pearls' in a shop, you might use the word Q to describe a bouncy, chewy consistency.
In Taiwan, the birthplace of the drink, you can order 珍珠奶茶 with different 'sugar levels' and 'ice levels' using a precise percentage system, such as '30% sugar'.
Beyond 珍珠奶茶, there is a version called 波霸奶茶 which uses 'boba' balls. These are significantly larger than 'pearls', often compared to the size of an eyeball.

我下午想喝珍珠奶茶。
Wǒ xiàwǔ xiǎng hē zhēnzhū nǎichá.
I want to drink bubble tea this afternoon.
這家店的珍珠奶茶很好喝。
Zhè jiā diàn de zhēnzhū nǎichá hěn hǎohē.
This shop's bubble tea is very delicious.

A couple is deciding what to drink during a walk.

俊杰 Junjie

雨婷，妳想喝珍珠奶茶嗎？
Yǔtíng, nǐ xiǎng hē zhēnzhū nǎichá ma?
Yuting, do you want to drink bubble tea?
雨婷 Yuting

我想喝，可是我現在不想喝冰的。
Wǒ xiǎng hē, kěshì wǒ xiànzài bù xiǎng hē bīng de.
I want to, but I don't want to drink something cold right now.
俊杰 Junjie

那我們喝熱的珍珠奶茶吧。
Nà wǒmen hē rè de zhēnzhū nǎichá ba.
Then let's drink hot bubble tea.
雨婷 Yuting

好啊，俊杰，我們走吧。
Hǎo a, Jùnjié, wǒmen zǒu ba.
Okay, Junjie, let's go.

Sources

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