廚師 / 厨师
cyu⁴ si¹, ceoi⁴ si¹
The Cantonese word for chef is 廚師 / 厨师 (cyu⁴ si¹, ceoi⁴ si¹). Wiktionary also lists 大廚 / 大厨.
Meaning: head cook of an establishment such as a restaurant (noun)
Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 廚師 / 厨师 | cyu⁴ si¹, ceoi⁴ si¹ |
| 大廚 / 大厨 |
廚師 / 厨师 is the standard term used to refer to a chef or a cook.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 廚師 / 厨师 is composed of 廚 (kitchen) and 師 (master or professional). It shares the same root character 廚 found in the word for kitchen, 廚房.
Which one should you use?
While 廚師 / 厨师 is a general term for a cook, 大廚 / 大厨 is specifically used to denote a head chef or a master chef of a kitchen.
How do you pronounce it?
cyu⁴ si¹, ceoi⁴ si¹
Did you know?
- The term 師傅 (si1 fu6) used for chefs is the same term used for traditional craftsmen and martial arts masters. Using this word elevates the chef from a simple employee to a practitioner of a lifelong discipline.
- In traditional Cantonese culinary culture, a chef's mastery is often judged by their ability to create 鑊氣 (wok hei), which translates to 'breath of the wok'. This refers to the complex charred aroma resulting from stir-frying ingredients over an extremely high heat.
- The character 師 (si1) in 廚師 can also refer to an army or a division. This reflects an ancient linguistic connection where a 'master' was someone capable of leading a large, organized group of people.
Examples in context
- 藝發茶樓點心師傅陳先生Dim Sum Master Chef Chan
Sources
- Wiktionary, “chef” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
