咖啡
kāfēi/kʰä⁵⁵ feɪ̯⁵⁵/
The English word "coffee" is translated into Chinese as 咖啡 (kāfēi). If unsure, use 咖啡.
Meaning: beverage (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 咖啡 | kāfēi | /kʰä⁵⁵ feɪ̯⁵⁵/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /kʰɔ⁴⁴ fiə²⁴/ (Mandarin, Dungan, Sinological IPA) |
|
| 咖啡 | ka-pi | /ko³³⁻²¹ pi³³/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Kinmen, Singapore, Penang, Sinological IPA, rare in Taiwan) /kɤ⁴⁴⁻³³ pi⁴⁴/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Kinmen, Singapore, Penang, Sinological IPA, Kaohsiung, rare in Taiwan) |
Hokkien |
The word refers to the beverage.
What does it mean word for word?
The adjective form 咖啡色 is created by adding the character 色 (color) to the noun 咖啡, meaning "coffee-colored" or "brown".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some regions, particularly in Beijing, the colloquial form 咖啡儿 (kā fēi r) is used to say coffee.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is ka-pi.
Did you know?
- The Chinese word 咖啡 is a loanword that ultimately traces its roots back to the Arabic word 'qahwa'.
- The characters used in 咖啡 are purely phonetic markers, meaning they were chosen only because they sound similar to the original word rather than for their own inherent meanings.
- The characters for 咖啡 are actually used in Japan to write the word 'coffee' as 珈琲, which is a direct phonetic transcription similar to the Chinese version.
Examples in context
- 他不喝咖啡。He doesn't drink coffee.This sentence is useful for practicing the negation of the verb to drink with 咖啡.Tatoeba #1724523 by egg0073, translation #1724520 by CH
- 咖啡還是茶？Coffee or tea?This sentence is useful for practicing a choice between two options using 咖啡.Tatoeba #2347106 by egg0073, translation #1080170 by shekitten
- 咖啡和香烟。Coffee and cigarettes.This sentence is useful for practicing the conjunction and with 咖啡.Tatoeba #4265176 by notabene, translation #337347 by qsanta
- 请给我一杯咖啡I would like a coffee, please.
- 你们有什么样的咖啡?What types of coffee do you have?
- 请给我一杯卡布奇诺Can I have a cappuccino, please?
- 你要喝点咖啡吗?Would you like some coffee?
- 我每天早上都喝咖啡提神I drink coffee every morning to wake up.
- 250 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Wei and Zihan are deciding what to order at a cafe.
- 伟 Wei你想喝咖啡吗？Nǐ xiǎng hē kāfēi ma?Do you want to drink coffee?
- 梓涵 Zihan我想，我想喝冰的。Wǒ xiǎng, wǒ xiǎng hē bīng de.I do, I want an iced one.
- 伟 Wei我也要一杯咖啡。Wǒ yě yào yì bēi kāfēi.I want a cup of coffee too.
- 梓涵 Zihan那我们快点点餐吧。Nà wǒmen kuài diǎn diǎn cān ba.Then let's order quickly.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “coffee” translations and entries 咖啡, 咖啡, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 咖啡, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
