Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 羊羔 | yánggāo |
| 羔 | gāo |
| 羔羊 | gāoyáng |
In Chinese, these terms are used to refer to young sheep. You will see lamb featured in various regional dishes, such as the whole roasted lamb of Xinjiang cuisine (烤全羊), the sliced boiled lamb in spicy broth of Sichuan cuisine (水煮羊肉), the cumin-spiced lamb of Sichuan (孜然羊肉), the spicy and numbing lamb of Sichuan (麻辣羊肉) or the stir-fried lamb (炒羊肉) and braised lamb (炖羊肉) found in Mongolian cuisine.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 羊羔 is composed of 羊, which means sheep and 羔, which means a young animal or lamb.
Which one should you use?
While 羊 refers to sheep in general, 羊羔 specifically refers to the young of the species. The form 羔羊 is a common alternative to 羊羔 and is often used in more literary or descriptive contexts.
How does it change in a sentence?
In casual spoken Chinese, people often use 小羊 (little sheep) to refer to a lamb instead of the more formal 羊羔.
How do you pronounce it?
yánggāo
Did you know?
- The character 羔 contains the 'fire' radical 灬 at the bottom, suggesting the concept of a lamb being cooked over a flame.
- While 羊羔 refers to the lamb, the word 羊 is used generically for both sheep and goats in Chinese.
- In Chinese culture, the 羊 (sheep/goat) is a symbol of auspiciousness and luck, often used in puns for 'good fortune'.
Examples in context
- 我想点一份羊肉I would like to order a serving of lamb.
- 那只羊羔很可爱。Nà zhī yánggāo hěn kě'ài.That lamb is very cute.
- 牧羊人照顾着羊羔。Mùyángrén zhàogùzhe yánggāo.The shepherd is taking care of the lamb.
Example conversation
At a countryside farm.
- 俊杰 Junjie你看那只羊羔多么白。Nǐ kàn nà zhī yánggāo duōme bái.Look how white that lamb is.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen它真的很漂亮。Tā zhēnde hěn piàoliang.It is really beautiful.
- 俊杰 Junjie我想给它喂点东西。Wǒ xiǎng gěi tā wèi diǎn dōngxi.I want to feed it something.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen小心，它可能会跑。Xiǎoxīn, tā kěnéng huì pǎo.Be careful, it might run away.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lamb” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 羔, CC BY-SA 4.0.
