梅
ume
The Japanese word for plum is 梅 (ume).
梅 (ume) refers specifically to the fruit of the Japanese apricot or Japanese plum. While English speakers might use the word 'plum' for different species, in Japanese, 梅 is the term for this specific fruit. Additionally, plum wine is known as umeshu and plum juice can be referred to as both sumomo jūsu or ume jūsu.
Meaning: fruit of Prunus domestica (noun)
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
ume
Did you know?
- The fruit of the 梅 tree is so acidic that it is rarely eaten raw and is almost always pickled as 梅干し (umeboshi).
- In traditional Japanese art, the 梅 blossom is often paired with bamboo and pine to represent the 'Three Friends of Winter'.
- The phonetic shift that turned mume into ume is the same pattern that changed the word for 'horse' from ma to uma.
Examples in context
- 見て、梅の木！Look. There's a plum tree.This sentence is useful for identifying a plum tree using 梅.Tatoeba #12074589 by small_snow, translation #12074592 by CK
- これは梅の木だよ。This is a plum tree.Tatoeba #10252802 by small_snow, translation #7152073 by sapphrein
- 梅の花は3月に咲く。Plum blossoms come out in March.This sentence is useful for discussing when plum blossoms bloom using 梅.Tatoeba #121521 by small_snow, translation #282484 by CK
- 梅の香り豊かな茶をいかがですか？How about some tea with a rich plum aroma?
- 今日、スーパーで美味しそうなスモモを見つけたんだ。Today, I found some delicious-looking plums at the supermarket.
- スモモジュースは夏に最適だと思うよ。I think plum juice is perfect for summer.
- 7 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Daito and Misaki are looking at a plate of fruit.
- 大翔 Hirotoこの梅はとても甘いね。Kono ume wa totemo amai ne.This plum is very sweet, isn't it?
- 美咲 Misakiうん、本当に美味しいよ。Un, hontō ni oishii yo.Yeah, it's really delicious.
- 大翔 Hirotoどこで梅を買ったの？Doko de ume o katta no?Where did you buy the plums?
- 美咲 Misaki近所のスーパーで買ったよ。Kinjo no sūpā de katta yo.I bought them at the local supermarket.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 梅, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
