糖霜
táng shuāng
The English phrase "icing" is translated into Chinese as 糖霜 (táng shuāng).
The term refers to the sweet glaze used for baked goods.
Meaning: sweet glaze used for baked goods (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of 糖 (sugar) and 霜 (frost).
Which one should you use?
While 糖霜 refers to a powdery or creamy icing, 糖釉 can be used to refer to a shiny sugar glaze.
How do you pronounce it?
táng shuāng
Did you know?
- Depending on the region, a 'sugar glaze' might be called 糖衣, which literally translates to 'sugar clothes'.
- In some regional dialects, people may use the term 挂糖 to describe the act of glazing a dessert, which literally means 'hanging sugar'.
- In Chinese, 霜 means 'frost', mirroring the English word 'frosting' by comparing a sweet white topping to frozen dew.
Examples in context
- 请给我加点糖霜。(Qǐng gěi wǒ jiā diǎn táng shuāng.)Please add some icing for me.
- 这个蛋糕上的糖霜很甜。Zhège dàngāo shàng de tángshuāng hěn tián.The icing on this cake is very sweet.
- 我想在饼干上涂一层糖霜。Wǒ xiǎng zài bǐnggān shàng tú yī céng tángshuāng.I want to put a layer of icing on the cookies.
- 你可以给我一点糖霜吗？Nǐ kěyǐ gěi wǒ yīdiǎn tángshuāng ma?Can you give me some icing?
Example conversation
Wei and Jiayi are baking together in the kitchen.
- 伟 Wei佳怡，这些饼干需要糖霜吗？Jiāyí, zhèxiē bǐnggān xūyào tángshuāng ma?Jiayi, do these cookies need icing?
- 佳怡 Jiayi需要，再涂一层糖霜会更好吃。Xūyào, zài tú yī céng tángshuāng huì gèng hào chī.Yes, it will taste better with a layer of icing.
- 伟 Wei好的，我这就去准备糖霜。Hǎo de, wǒ zhè jiù qù zhǔnbèi tángshuāng.Okay, I will go prepare the icing now.
- 佳怡 Jiayi谢谢你，伟。Xièxiè nǐ, Wěi.Thank you, Wei.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “icing” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
