防腐剂
The English phrase "preservatives" is translated into Mandarin as 防腐剂.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of 防 (prevent/guard), 腐 (rot/decay) and 剂 (agent/substance).
How does it change in a sentence?
The term is a noun and does not change its form for pluralization.
Did you know?
- In modern Chinese internet slang, people sometimes jokingly refer to their heavy makeup as a kind of 防腐剂 because it 'preserves' their youth and hides signs of aging.
- While 防腐剂 refers to chemical preservatives, the act of 'preserving' food through traditional means, like salting or sugaring, is usually described as 腌制 ('yānzhì'), a completely different linguistic root.
- The character 腐 in 防腐剂 is the same one used in 豆腐 ('tofu'). Literally, 'tofu' means 'curdled beans', but the character 腐 specifically refers to the process of fermentation or softening.
Examples in context
- 在食品生产过程中使用适量的防腐剂是保证食品质量的一种重要方法。Using an appropriate amount of preservatives during the food production process is an important method to ensure food quality.
- 这种食物含有防腐剂。This food contains preservatives.
- 这种零食里含有防腐剂。Zhè zhǒng língshí lǐ hányǒu fángfǔjì.This kind of snack contains preservatives.
- 我不喜欢吃添加了防腐剂的食物。Wǒ bù xǐhuān chī tiānjiāle fángfǔjì de shíwù.I don't like eating food with added preservatives.
- 配料表里没有防腐剂。Pèiliào biǎo lǐ méiyǒu fángfǔjì.There are no preservatives in the ingredients list.
Example conversation
At a supermarket, 晓雯 and 浩然 are looking at food labels.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen浩然，你看这个面包里有防腐剂吗？Hàorán, nǐ kàn zhège miànbāo lǐ yǒu fángfǔjì ma?Haoran, can you see if there are preservatives in this bread?
- 浩然 Haoran我看了一下，这里面确实有防腐剂。Wǒ kànle yīxià, zhè lǐmiàn quèshí yǒu fángfǔjì.I checked, and it indeed contains preservatives.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen那我们换一个健康的吧。Nà wǒmen huàn yīgè jiànkāng de ba.Then let's pick a healthier one.
- 浩然 Haoran好，我来找找别的。Hǎo, wǒ lái zhǎozhao bié de.Okay, I'll look for something else.
