味噌汤
wèicēngtāng
The English phrase "miso soup" is 味噌汤 (wèicēngtāng) in Chinese.
Meaning: Japanese soup (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of 味噌, which is a loanword from Japanese for "miso" and 汤, meaning "soup".
How do you pronounce it?
wèicēngtāng
Did you know?
- While 味噌 is a loanword from Japanese, the characters were originally used in ancient China to describe a different type of fermented soybean paste.
- In professional Chinese culinary circles, you might hear it referred to as 日式味噌汁 (rìshì wèicēng zhī), using the word 'juice/liquid' instead of 'soup'.
- If you order this in a traditional Chinese restaurant, the staff might be confused, as miso is a distinctly foreign fermented product to Chinese cuisine.
Example conversation
At a Japanese restaurant during lunch.
- 雨婷 Yuting志强，你想点味噌汤吗？Zhìqiáng, nǐ xiǎng diǎn wèizōngtāng ma?Zhiqiang, do you want to order miso soup?
- 志强 Zhiqiang好啊，我正好想喝点热的。Hǎo a, wǒ zhènghǎo xiǎng hē diǎn rè de.Sure, I happen to want to drink something hot.
- 雨婷 Yuting那我也点一碗。Nà wǒ yě diǎn yì wǎn.Then I will order a bowl too.
- 志强 Zhiqiang这里的味噌汤看起来不错。Zhèlǐ de wèizōngtāng kàn qǐlái bùcuò.The miso soup here looks good.
