意面
The English word pasta is translated into Mandarin as 意面.
意面 refers to a dish or serving.
Meaning: dish or serving (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term is a contraction of 意大利面 (yì dà lì miàn), where 意 (yì) is a shorthand for 意大利 (Italy) and 面 (miàn) means noodles or flour-based food.
Did you know?
- The first character in 意面, 意 (yì), also means 'idea' or 'meaning' in Mandarin. This creates a playful linguistic coincidence where the word for 'Italian noodles' shares a character with the word for 'thought'.
- Many Chinese diners prefer their 意面 to be cooked softer than 'al dente', as the cultural preference for noodles leans toward a smoother texture.
- The word 'Italy' (意大利, yì dà lì) is a phonetic transliteration. This means the characters were chosen specifically because they sound like the name 'Italy', rather than because their individual meanings relate to the country.
Examples in context
- 你吃意面吗？Do you eat pasta?Tatoeba #9961277 by GlossaMatik, translation #7702267 by Yanahma
- 我想吃意面。Wǒ xiǎng chī yìmiàn.I want to eat pasta.
- 这盘意面很好吃。Zhè pán yìmiàn hěn hǎochī.This plate of pasta is delicious.
Example conversation
A couple is deciding what to eat for dinner.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen我们晚餐吃意面吧？Wǒmen wǎncān chī yìmiàn ba?Shall we have pasta for dinner?
- 志强 Zhiqiang好啊，我也想吃。Hǎo a, wǒ yě xiǎng chī.Sure, I want to eat it too.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen你想吃红酱的意面吗？Nǐ xiǎng chī hóngjiàng de yìmiàn ma?Do you want pasta with red sauce?
- 志强 Zhiqiang可以，没问题。Kěyǐ, méi wèntí.That works, no problem.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
