スパイス
supaisu[sɨ̥pa̠isɨ]
The English word 'spice' can be translated into Japanese as スパイス (supaisu) or 香辛料.
Meaning: plant matter used to season or flavour food (noun)
Ways to say it
| Japanese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| スパイス | supaisu | [sɨ̥pa̠isɨ] (narrow) |
| 香辛料 | kōshinryō | [ko̞ːɕĩn̺ɾʲo̞ː] (narrow) |
The term refers to plant matter used to season or flavour food. Examples of such items in Japanese cuisine include Shichimi Togarashi, a traditional Japanese seven-spice blend that often includes ground red chili peppers and Wasabi, a pungent, green paste-like condiment made from Japanese horseradish.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 香辛料 is composed of kanji that literally mean 'fragrant' (香), 'pungent/spicy' (辛) and 'material/ingredient' (料).
Which one should you use?
香辛料 is a more formal or technical term for spices, often used in culinary contexts or on product labels.
How do you pronounce it?
supaisu
Did you know?
- In Japan, 'spicy' food is often categorized as 激辛 ('gekikara'), which literally means 'extreme spice', a term that has evolved into a popular marketing label for challenging food competitions.
- The term スパイス is often used in Japanese marketing to make food products sound more exotic or Western than if they were labeled with the traditional 香辛料.
- The word 辛い (karai), which shares a kanji with 香辛料, does not only mean 'spicy' or 'hot', but is also used to describe 'salty' or 'heavy' flavors in certain regional dialects.
Examples in context
- 好きな香辛料は？What's your favorite spice?This sentence is useful for asking about someone's favorite usage of 香辛料.Tatoeba #11733066 by small_snow, translation #11733041 by CK
- この料理にはスパイスが足りない。Kono ryouri ni wa supaisu ga tarinai.This dish is lacking spice.
- 新しいスパイスを買いに行きます。Atarashii supaisu o kai ni ikimasu.I am going to buy some new spices.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two people are cooking together in a kitchen.
- 美咲 Misakiこのカレーにスパイスを入れる？Kono karee ni supaisu o ireru?Should I put spice in this curry?
- 大翔 Hirotoうん、もっと入れていいよ。Un, motto irete ii yo.Yeah, you can put in more.
- 美咲 Misaki大翔くん、どのスパイスが好き？Hiroto-kun, dono supaisu ga suki?Hiroto, which spice do you like?
- 大翔 Hiroto僕はコリアンダーが好きだよ。Boku wa koriandaa ga suki da yo.I like coriander.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “spice” translations and entries スパイス, 香辛料, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
