Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 蒸汽 | |
| 水蒸氣 / 水蒸气 | seoi² zing¹ hei³ |
The word refers to water vapor. In a culinary context, related verbs such as 蒸 or 清蒸 are used to describe the act of cooking food with steam.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 水蒸氣 is a compound consisting of 水 (water), 蒸 (steam/to steam) and 氣 (gas/vapor/air).
Which one should you use?
蒸汽 is typically used in technical or industrial contexts, such as when discussing steam engines. In contrast, 水蒸氣 is the standard term used to describe the physical phenomenon of water vapor.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The single character 蒸 can function as a verb meaning 'to steam' food.
When do people say it?
When cooking, the term 清蒸 is a specific culinary verb for steaming food, which often implies using light seasoning to preserve the natural flavor of the ingredients, most commonly used with fish or seafood.
Did you know?
- While 蒸汽 refers to steam, the character 氣 is also used in the concept of 氣功 (qigong). This relates the physical vapor of steam to the invisible 'vital energy' or 'breath' that flows through the body.
- The character 蒸 is used in the name of 蒸籠, the iconic tiered bamboo baskets used for dim sum. These baskets are designed so that steam circulates without dripping water back onto the food.
- While 水蒸氣 is the scientific term for water vapor, Cantonese poets may use 霧 (mist or fog) to evoke the same imagery of suspended water droplets.
Example sentences for Cantonese are not verified yet.
Example conversation
Zhiqiang and Jiaxin are in a kitchen looking at a pot.
- 志強 Chi Keung嘉欣，你睇下個煲出咗好多蒸汽。ga1 han1, nei5 tai2 haa6 go3 bou1 ceot1 zo2 hou2 do1 zing1 kei4.Jiaxin, look at all the steam coming out of the pot.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan係喎，水應該已經滾咗。hai6 wo3, seoi2 jing1 goi1 ji1 ging1 gwan2 zo2.You're right, the water should be boiling already.
- 志強 Chi Keung我而家熄火啦。ngo5 ji4 gaa1 sik1 fo2 laa1.I'll turn off the heat now.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan好，唔該你，志強。hou2, m4 goi1 nei5, zi3 keong4.Okay, thank you, Zhiqiang.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “steam” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
